A roomful of Casablancas
by Lady Fenix
Summary: AR: After years of being an outcast, Rei is finally going to meet her father's side of the family. She is faced with mistrust, resentment, anger and greed but also romance and love in the form of the very sexy Jay Arlington.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimers: Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Taekuchi. I'm just borrowing them for the time being.

** Chapter 1: A letter **

By Lady Fenix 

Furuhata Motoki, former worker and now proud owner of the Crown Game Center in Juubangai, kept glancing at the raven-haired beauty sitting by the window while trying valiantly to keep his face solemn. As he moved around the place serving the customers, mostly teenagers from the local schools, he noticed that he was not the only one that kept throwing glances at the woman.

Dressed in red tank top and black mini skirt that showed of gorgeous long legs, Motoki had to admit that she was a looker. Her long raven hair was loose and floated down her slender back like rich mink. She had the beauty that was both classical and yet exotic. Lovely and pale she looked like the classical shrine maiden of the stories. Yet there was something that differed her from the beauties in the books and that was her large violet eyes; a heritage from her western father. 

The woman caused quite a stir among the customers in the game center. The young lads looked at her with puppy eyes, no doubt she will be in more than one of their dreams tonight. The girls hanging together by the bar kept dividing their attention between throwing her envious glances and trying to catch Motoki's eyes. Unlike them however the only part of the woman Motoki was interested in looking at was her right foot. The appearance she gave was serene but her right foot which had at about ten minutes ago started tapping showed the impatience she was feeling. To Motoki that was highly amusing since he knew how much she hated waiting on people.

From across the room he caught his sister, Una's warning glance. She gave him a pointed look and then at their friend. Motoki winked at her that he got the message and the with a tuneless whistle he finished off mixing the frosty drink with all the special toppings and extras. The thing they had to do because of friendships. Then with a grin on his face he set the drink on a small the tray and carried it over to the booth by the window.

"Here you go, Rei. A Motoki special on the house." He told her and set down the drink with a flourish.

Hino Rei looked up at the blonde young man and could not help to feel the smile form even as she tried to hold it back. "Motoki, if this is the way you greet all of your female customers then no wonder you have so many admirers. Does Reika know what you're doing?" 

Nishimura Reika was Motoki's wife and also a friend of Rei's. 

"Well you know what she doesn't know won't hurt her or me." Motoki told her with a wink.

Rei laughed at that bold lie. They both knew that Motoki was very much in love with his wife and while Reika herself was not the jealous type, Motoki was even more conscious of making sure the female customers at the game center knew that he was happily married than his wife. 

"So what's the plan for this afternoon? You and Ami going antiquarian bookstores again?" 

Other young women that Motoki knew went shopping for clothes but Rei and Ami were the only ones who went book hunting on their spare time. He found it quite amusing but Una found it unnatural and every time the other two asked her to join she always shuddered though she did not have any qualms about dragging them with her during her shopping sprees. From the looks on those twos faces afterwards, Motoki imagined it as nightmarish as book-shopping was for Uni. Still they were friends and they endured it. 

"We were supposed to check out this new one that had opened up at Yasukuni. Of course that depends on whether or not Ames decides to show up at all."

Just then as if mentioning the name had called upon her, the door opened and a young woman with short ebony hair and large blue eyes entered the room. She waved a greeting to Una by the counter before joining them at the booth. 

"Sorry I'm late." She apologized with a bow. 

Rei made a sniffing sound. "It was supposed to be half past two, Ames." Rei told her, tapping against the watch on her left wrist, which was currently showing five past three.

"Sorry, Rei." Ami said with another guilty look and bowed again. 

Knowing that Rei was pulling her legs, Motoki felt sorry for Ami and decided to come to her rescue. "Don't worry, Ames. She was late also." He told her in a conspiring tone. 

He got two different reactions from the women. One cast him a sweet smile while the other shot him an annoyed look along with a hiss. "Traitor."

Giving them both a roughish smile in return, Motoki said when Ami had settled down. "Are my two lovely ladies ready to order now then?"

"Oh be gone, Toki. You already know what we want. Now go flirt with those lovesick puppies and leave us to our girl-talk." Rei told him and shooed him off with a wave of her hand. 

Of course Motoki was not about to leave that easily. Ami watched in silence as she listened to them banter absently drinking from the milkshake in front of Rei. The air was humid outside and having run all the way from the station, Ami was more than grateful to have something to slake her thirst, the fact that it was her favorite drink was only a bonus.

As she enjoyed the cold drink, Ami studied her friend through her lowered lashes. Watching Rei and Motoki mock argument, the way siblings did it, made her feel real good. It was a proof of just how much Rei considered Motoki as a friend to see her act like this. Many people who knew Rei Hino the shrine maiden of Hikawa Shrine or the shop assistant of the local bakery store would never have believed their eyes if they saw her now. The carefree mood, the sparkling eyes and the open honest face, how different that was from the normally reserved facade she always kept on. Being a very private person, Rei only allowed a few people she trust to come close enough in her life to get to know the real her, which in Ami's eyes was a pity. Then again Ami understood her friend too. Having been hurt by one of the most important men in her life, it was hard for Rei to trust in others, especially men. 

"Hey that's my drink." The indignant voice of Rei's pulled Ami back from her reminisce. 

Looking down at the empty glass, Ami gave a sheepish smile. "Sorry. It was hot outside." 

Rei shook her head. "Never mind." She caught Motoki's eyes by the bar and signaled him for two more. Then turning back she studied Ami carefully, "Rough day at work?" 

Ami smiled. "Fujimara-san insisted that I take the two last patients before I left. He said he had an appointment to get to."

Rei gave an indelicate snort. "He's only coming up with excuses. No doubt he went golfing again. Honestly Ames you are being too nice. You have to start saying no to him or he'll walk all over you."

An embarrassed blush crept up her cheeks. "Its okay. Fujimara-san would not have asked me if he did not think he could trust me with it. Afterall I'm just glad he lets me do things for him, that way at least I can repay him for the kindness he showed me."

"As if he had not gotten a bargain out hiring you." Rei said sarcastically. "Lets just change subject." 

Men like Fujimara Shinji always infuriated her. Sneaky enough to recognize a talent when they see it and use it to their advantage by playing on the kindness of those people. Men so much like her father.

At the thought of her father, Rei was invaded with mixed emotions. Worry, guilt, anger, resentment and love. 

Sensing her changed mood, Ami asked. "Is there still no news?"

There was no point in denying it, having grown up together and gone to the same school they knew each other as well as they knew themselves. At fist Rei had been frightened by that closeness but then she had become used to it and now she could even find comfort in it. 

Rei looked up and met her serious eyes and shook her head. "No. Uncle Martin promised he would call once he heard something."

Marcus Holden, Rei's father had been on a business trip when his plane had encountered bad weather and gone down in the Pacific a month ago. The weather around there had been too bad for them to make a thorough search but as time passed chances of finding him alive also lessened. 

Ami had not asked how Rei felt about the whole thing and Rei had been grateful of that. The truth was she did not know herself. He was and always will be her father. She knew that without him there would be no her. Yet all her life he had never paid any attention to her. Ever since her parents' divorce Rei had lived with her mother and grandfather at the Hikawa Shrine. Before her mother's death Rei had seen him on a few occasional time a year, afterwards she only saw him on her birthdays and in the recent years not even that. Kay, his assistance had been sent instead. 

Rei was more than grateful at Motoki when he came over with their plates of food, giving her the opportunity to think about something else. The day was too wonderful to be spoiled by thoughts of her father. What will happen will happen. It was seldom she and Ami managed to get half the afternoon off at the same time to go shopping. The weather was wonderful and the summer had arrived. It was time to have fun. 

Ami seemed to agree with her too. As they parted ways on the entrance of Hikawa Shrine five hours later both of them were each carrying two bags loaded with books; the results of their good spirit. Rei's were a mixture of classical novels both English, Japanese and Chinese as well as some manga while Ami's were more scientific though Rei noticed with amusement that she had a manga mixed in them too. She supposed some influence from her must have rubbed off. After all Ami did manage to help her become more computer friendly. 

The steps leading up to the shrine were precisely hundred and fifty. Rei had counted them as a child to make sure. On both sides of the steps cherry trees had been planted, to spring out and bloom during April. As she slowly walked up the steps Rei, closed her eyes and inhaled the fresh air and the serenity. Despite being situated in central Tokyo the Hikawa Shrine was still a quiet haven the moment one entered its ground. To Rei, the place always gave her a sense of peace.

The peace she felt did not last long however. She knew it the moment she saw her grandfather's small form standing outside the temple waiting for her and read the look in his eyes. There were regret in them.

"Your uncle called while you were out." He told her gently. "I told him you were not due back until a few more hours and he said he'll try calling again tonight but that he would be sending someone over with this." He handed her a white envelope. There was no stamp or anything on it, just her name typed over the front. "I'm sorry, child."

Setting down her bags, Rei took the envelope from her grandfather's hand. While she slowly opened the envelope, she felt her grandfather pat her on the back before he silently disappeared inside the temple. She pulled out the letter which happened to be a fax and read the content. 

__

Dear Rei

No doubt your grandfather already informed you about the unfortunate fate of your father. I wanted to explain things to you in person but I guess it is better for you to hear the news from him rather than me. I find myself at loss for words. 

The funeral will be at the family villa on Connecticut in a few weeks. Madame wants everyone to attend. I have booked a ticket for you to be picked up at the airport at your earliest convenience. It's an open ticket so the date can be changed. 

Please do try to make it in good time. Madame hates tardiness.

Sincerely

U, Martin

Rei grimaced at the last sentence. Madame this. Madame that. It was hard to believe that a big strong man like Martin Holden was still so afraid of his mother considering that she must be reaching eighty or ninety by now. She had heard a lot about the powerful matriarch of the Holden empire. It was said that she ruled over her family with a iron hand the same way she ruled over her business. When she snapped her fingers people jumped and they did not stop until she said so. 

If Rei felt a mixture of feelings concerning her father, there was certainly no confusion when it came to her grandmother. She despised her. On principle because she did not believe in using methods like terror to make people do things and on personal bases because the old woman had been part of the reason why Rei's parents got divorced. 

If Martin had not phrased so many Madame in his letter, Rei would not have hesitated to take the next flight to the States. Now she felt a rebellious urge just to stay put because she knew it would annoy the old woman. Why bother pleasing an old woman whom never counted her as family to begin with? Or for that matter honoring the memory of a father who never existed?

* * *

Author's note: Yes for those of you who have been to my webpage this is an old story that I decided to post here as well. Expect the next chapter to come out in a few days. 

Well anyways hope you enjoy it. 


	2. A promise

Standard disclaimer applies.

** Chapter 2: A promise **

By Lady Fenix 

The bright blue convertible flashed down the road, zipping past cars and trucks like an angry bee. Loud honks followed the car but fortunately no sounds of sirens, yet.

Mina Arlington cast a glance at the rear mirror, her impish blue eyes taking in the waving fist of the man in the beat up Honda. So she had cut the lane at bit too fast and a bit too close to the guy, but heck if he had intended to drive like a snail then he should have stayed off the highway and taken a country road instead. The point of the highway was so that people could be allowed to drive faster and thus reach their destination quicker. 

At the thought of reaching her destination, Mina cast a glance at the slim watch on her wrist. A quarter to eleven. Well she might still make it, provided that is her target didn't put a too big fuss about the arrangement. 

"Mina. Mina. Mina. Why do you consistently put yourself into these situations?" Mina sighed and shook her head. 

Just then the small crystal angel hanging from her rear window shifted with the movement of the car, catching the sunrays and reflecting it back on Mina's face. It was a gift from Gramps from his last trip to Monterrey. He said it reminded him of her the moment he saw it hanging on the boutique window. The family's own little guardian angel. 

As usual Mina felt her lips pull back into a smile at the thought of her paternal grandfather; a man whom in truth had acted more as a father to her and her brother than their real one ever had; a warm loving man with the heart of gold, possessing a sense of chivalry that should of belonged to a knight in mediaeval times. 

Yes, the answer to her question was simple. She did it because of her Gramps. Because she knew how much Madame meant to him and how much the family in turn meant to her. It was a tangled web. Then again when it came to the Holdens what wasn't?

At the thought of the eccentric family that Mina was unofficially a member of, the blonde couldn't hold back the grin that surfaced up to her face. There were a lot that could be said about the Holden family and even more about the matriarch, Madame, as everyone called her. But dull was certainly not a word that would be applied to them. This morning's incident was no exception.

~ o ~ 

"I can't believe you would do that!" The scream, accompanied by the shattering of porcelain drifted through grand halls of the mansion.

While raised voices was not uncommon in the Holden Mansion it was still rare enough that Mina, on her way towards the dining room forgot her hunger and slowed down to listen.

"Really, Marcia. Was that really necessary" Came the slightly resigned voice of Martin Holden. 

"Don't try to lecture me about manners, you traitor! Have you completely lost your mind? " Marcia demanded with shriek that made Mina wince even from her distance. Briefly she wondered how Martin's ears were faring. 

While retired, Marcia Holden's voice still held the promises that made her one of the most popular Broadway performers nearly a quarter of a century ago. This made Mina even more curious as to why Marcia's has lost her temper. 

Silently she crept closer, making sure that the heels of her Manolo Bhlanik didn't make too much noise against the tiles.

"Marcia, you're exaggerating things. Picking her up at the airport does not count as a traitorous act."

"No but inviting her is." 

"You forget that it was Madame's wish that she attend the funeral." Martin pointed out mildly. The sound of porcelain clicking and scratching told Mina that he just set down his coffee cup. Knowing him as a creature of habit, Mina could almost imagine him sitting at the second chair to the end by the window, with the eastern sun setting fire on red hair. 

"Madame said family members. _She_ hardly counts as one. She and her slut of a mother were thrown out of this home nearly twenty years ago." 

"If I were you," Martin's voice came drifting around the corner, "I would watch my tongue, Marcia. If for nobody's sake then Reggie's." The word where phrased like a suggestion but there was no mistaking the steel behind the warning tone. Hearing it and knowing that it meant his patience was wearing thin, Mina quickly jumped out of her hiding place and entered the room.

"Well good morning. You two are up early." Mina greeted them cheerfully and breezed into the room, her famous disarming smile flashing. 

"I had some business in town." Martin told her giving her a slight smile in reply.

"Yes consorting with the enemy." Marcia said snidely from his side. Obviously she had been hovering over him trying to make her point clear. Pieces of shattered china were lying on the floor close to the edge of the table. 

"Oh, anything interesting going on?" Mina asked arching a pale brow. She turned around leaning negligently against the large table by the wall, the cup of coffee she just poured warming her hands. "Martin's on his way to pick up a spy or what?"

There was no need to pretend she hadn't heard some of the conversation. Plus this way she might even shock them and if there was one thing that Mina was fond of, it was drama. She figured since the act has already started she might as well go with the flow and make the best of it.

"Nothing quite that dramatic." Martin told her and rose from his seat. "I'm just headed for the airport to pick up Rei. Marcia however," He cast his sister in law a glance, "seems to think that is an act of treason."

Mina's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Rei? "She's coming today? I wasn't aware of that."

"Oh don't feel too neglected about that, dear." Marcia told her and cast a cold look at Martin. "Its only natural since Martin made an effort to keep it all a secret." 

Martin rolled his eyes heavenwards. "Marcia please. I've gone through this once already with you. I haven't said anything because there had been no opportunity. Ever since the accident, there's been a lot to handle." His voice choked slightly and he took a steadying breath. 

Marcia looked at his loss of control with a mixture of resignation and disapproval. No doubt she didn't feel that was a manly thing to do. 

"No you just planned on springing that surprise on us on the day of the funeral. Had you planned on giving Madame a heart attack?"

"No, unlike some people I'm not that eager to inherit my mother's wealth." The cold look he gave her spoke volumes of whom he was referring to. 

Marcia sucked in her breath in outrage. Knowing that a full blown explosion was threatening to come, Mina quickly intervened. 

"Well I think it's nice that she can be here for her father's funeral. After all considering their relationship, she might not have wanted to."

Marcia sniffed disdainfully. "Hardly surprising at all. Vultures always gather around the dead. Why should she be any different than her mother?"

"Marcia!" The sharp command made both women give a start. 

Marcia's painted lips thinned in displeasure. "Well it's the truth. Her mother was nothing but an opportunistic social climbing, gold digging manipulating slut who -".

Whatever she was about to say Mina never heard the end of as Martin cut her off. "Whatever happened in the past was between Marcus and Sakura. They're both dead now and the rest of us should just stay out of it." 

It was clear that Marcia did not agree with him when she opened her mouth but somehow the look Martin gave her had enough of an impact to make her close it again. 

Mina was intrigued. She didn't know much about Marcus' first wife or what had led to the end of the marriage and his estrangement to his daughter. Marcus never spoke of it; in fact he mostly acted like he never had a daughter. Mina always assumed that he was too busy with his own career to care. After all Mina's own father was like that, though worse because in his case he didn't even have a career to focus on unless one counted jumping from one bed to another. The fact that the rest of the family didn't speak of it was not so surprising either. After all Madame was very much against scandals and divorce would have certainly been considered that. Martin's own failed marriage was proof of that. If it weren't for the fact that the man still held a torch for his ex and love for his daughter, Mina would probably not have heard much about them either. As it was now she was the one who often had to run the errands of setting up the meetings between father and daughter through the former husband and wife.

Obviously in Marcus' case more than that lay behind it. Whatever it was though, Mina never had the chance to ask as at that moment, Bentley the ever present and loyal butler, came in announcing that Marcia had a phone call from Miss Alicia. Martin seemed to think it was the perfect moment for him make his excuse and vanished and so once again Mina was left alone to break her fast in that large dining room. 

She tried to take her meal in good pace and enjoy the morning sun that shone through the French doors but the emptiness of the place seemed like an invisible hand that pushed her to hurry. In less than ten minutes later she was out of the mansion and on her way back to the guest house. 

As she walked across the well managed lawn, Mina mused over the fact that while this place was in reality smaller in size than the mansion on Connecticut, it felt larger. Maybe it was because Gramps and Madame used the other one as their permanent residence and only stayed in this one on their trips to the headquarter of Holden Inc. Holden Inc owned many estates and condos around the world that were used as living quarters for the members of the family and executive chiefs, but to Mina home had always been where those two were and in the recent five years that had been the mansion on Connecticut. 

Well, she mused it wasn't that she had really thought she would manage to catch them here. It was just a wild hunch and obviously she aimed wrong. They had chosen to fly back on the private jet at the same time as she had driven to the Island. Of course in situations like this, Jay would probably had told her that she could have saved herself the trouble if she had only bothered to pick up the phone and called ahead. In Mina's opinion that would have taken away a lot of the point behind the visit. A surprise wouldn't be a surprise if she called ahead. Plus phones where just not her thing (not that a lot of electronic instruments were). She preferred to deal with people face to face. 

"Mina, a moment of your time, please." 

Surprised, Mina stopped just at the porch outside of the guesthouse and waited for the tall man to catch to her. 

"Anything I can help you with, Martin?" 

Martin hesitated. It was a sure sign that he wanted something. Most probably something that was a bit delicate too. He had a habit of always hedging around the subject like a cat around a bowl of cream. 

Mentally sighing and saying goodbye to the warm bath she was looking forward to, Mina opened the door. "Why don't you come inside where there's A.C.?"

Martin followed her to the living room where the sound of Mozart was still playing the background. She realized with a slight guilt that she'd once again forgot to close the stereo when she left for the main house. Bentley would not be happy if he found out. He was a stickler for preserving energy. If it wasn't for the fashion part, Mina would have wagered that he joined Woodstock along with the rest of the hippies in the sixties. 

"I hope I'm not keeping you from any other pressing matters?" Martin said as he carefully sat down on one of the two Italian sofas in the room. He was careful not to wrinkle his suit. 

Dressed much more casually and thus not bothered with such things, Mina made herself comfortable on the opposite, kicking her sandals off and tucking her legs underneath her. "Not at all. My time, as many in the family has pointed out to me, is filled with nothing but frivolous things any way." She could not quite keep the bite from her tone but she added the smile to take the sting away.

The fact that no one took her acting career seriously, except for Gramps, was something that hurt deep down. Oh they gave their support it was just that no one thought it was something that would last. Half of them didn't think she had the quality in her to make it and the other half thought it was just another fancy she had, that she would loose interest in pretty soon. 

Martin blinked and smiled slightly. Once again, Mina was quite startled to see Madame in him when he smiled like that. Appearance wise it was the only thing he had inherited from his mother, unlike the old lady, Martin did not have the shrewdness in mind to become a great business man, nor did he have the back of steel and the sense of ruthlessness that sometimes was needed. Martin was soft, whereas his mother was steel herself. It was only when he smiled that people where reminded that he was in fact, Georgina Holden's middle son. 

"You give yourself far too little credit, my dear. It's really admirable you are able to concentrate on your career the way you have to jump back and forth running errands for the family. I for one am grateful for the help you have given me over the years." Martin told her and she could see from his eyes that he was being sincere.

Mina felt her heart soften and acting on her feelings, she walked over and gave him a hug. "Thanks, Martin."

Martin patted her back awkwardly. Physical contact and expression of emotional feelings like these were rare for him and like always he never knew how to handle them. Clearing his throat he said, "Well it is the truth and not because I..ah..need your help that is."

Mina grinned. "Don't take everything Jay say to heart. That brother of mine can be a bit insensitive sometimes. Besides," she added and tossed a golden blonde curl over her shoulder, "he ought to know better than anyone, flattery doesn't always work for me." 

Martin shook his head. "I never can understand the two of you. One moment you are like terriers tearing at each other and the next moment you will go through any extent to come to the others defense."

"It's called sibling love." Mina told him with a wink.

"Not all siblings." Martin told her absently.

Mina knew he was thinking about his own estranged relationships with his brothers. 

"Every relationship between siblings is different. Jay and I have are just more expressive people. Maybe it's the Arlington genes in us. The Holden's have always been the more reserved ones. That doesn't mean that you don't love each other. I'm sure even Terrence with his gruff ways cares for the two of you. And anyone who knew you and Marcus never doubted your brotherhood."

"He was good a brother. He always looked after me even though I was the older one. I wish," Martin was quiet for a moment and Mina let him be, giving him time to go through his grief. She never realized just how much Martin had loved his brother. Despite having known him for most of her life, it was like watching through an open window and seeing a deeper part of Martin that she hadn't seen before. Not that she had any doubts of his capability of emotional feelings, but Martin was a very private man whom kept his feelings mostly to himself. A middle son syndrome, she guessed.

"Actually it is because of Marcus that I came here."

"Oh, I thought Madame and Kaito were handling all the details concerning the funerals and such." When it came to the clan Mina did not have many objections helping out but she did have something against death. Helping out with arranging a funeral was just her thing. 

"Yes, but this is a bit more delicate than that and far more personal."

Mina kept quiet and waited. She tried not to think about what that could be. She certainly didn't want to guess.

"I'm sure you can recall my little disagreement with Marcia earlier?" 

The puzzles fell into places and Mina gave a relieved sigh mentally. "You mean about Marcus' daughter's attendance at the funeral?"

"Yes. Like Marcia said before, Rei's presence will be a bit of a problem at the funeral but nevertheless as Marcus' daughter, she has a right to attend. While Madame hasn't said so in as many words, I believe she meant Rei as well when she said _all_ members of the family had to be present at the funeral." Martin took a deep breath. "As things stand, Rei's plane is supposed to arrive today at JFK at one o'clock. It was my intention to head to the office and finish some papers before I pick her up at the airport. Unfortunately something came up at the office, having to the do with the delegation from France. They demand to speak with a member of the family. You know how the French can be sometimes. I seriously doubt that I will be able to make it on time."

"So you want me to help you pick her up instead." Mina finished for him.

Martin looked at her inquiringly. "Will that be a problem for you?" 

"Yes." 

His face fell. 

Mina laughed. "Only because I don't know how she looks like. I don't want to pick up the wrong Japanese. You will have to do the explaining then."

Martin gave a relieved sigh. "Honestly, you and your sense of humor." He smiled and reached for something in the inner pocket of his suit. "As a matter of fact, I do have something to help you out there. Here." 

He handed her a picture.

"It was taken on her graduation day. Not exactly the freshest part but according to her grandfather she should look about the same."

Mina looked down at the picture showing a young girl in her school uniform. Her hair was dark and long, reaching to her waist. And here, Mina thought, she was the only one who favored long hair. The color was rich black with purplish hue. It contrasted greatly with her pale skin, which reminded of the colors on lustrous pearl. The most startling feature was however the girl's eyes, it was large and the color could only be described as violet. No doubt about it she was a Holden. _They look just like Madame's. I wonder what she would think about that._

"She's beautiful. Oh I wish I had her colorings. Imagine the kind of roles I could cast." Mina mused with envy. 

"If you think she's beautiful then you should have seen her mother." Martin told her and rose. There was a look in his eyes that made Mina pause for a moment.

"So can you help me out here? I will be eternally grateful. I know I could have asked my assistance to do it but it just didn't feel right. It's her first time her and considering the circumstances it should be family that picked her up and not strangers. The problem is I don't think I can ask anyone else but you."

Mina smiled. "Sure, no problem."

~ o ~ 

"No problem, no problem. Damn you, Chauncy. Why did you have to land an audition for me at the last moment?" Mina muttered under her breath as she headed up the elevator on her way to the top floor.

She had every good intention of keeping her word to Martin. The only problem was Chauncy called her on the cell phone just as she was about to drive out the garage, telling her that she managed to land an audition for a semi large role in Vincent De Marco's newest project. The man was a legend in the film industry. If Mina managed to get the role it could be the break she was looking for concerning her career.

Still she couldn't just break her promise. 

The sliding doors opened revealing an elegant hallway with art collections, freshly cut flowers and muted ivory walls. Mina tried the door bell. No answer. She banged on the door. Still no answer. She put her finger on the doorbell and kept it there for as long as her own ears could stand and then she called out.

"Come on, Jay. I know you're in there so you might as well open the door 'coz I'm not going anywhere until you do."

No answer.

Mina swore. 

Fine if he was going to do it the hard way. She put her fingers on the doorbell and banged her fist against the door. She even contemplated on kicking it but one look at her brand new shoes and she quickly dashed that idea. Her brother was not worth ruining her shoes over.

The hand the suddenly touched her from behind had her climbing in the air screaming. Whirling around with her hand against her racing heart she met the puppy eyes of Angelo, the fateful doorman who acted as security in this building.

"Oh Angelo, you took five years of my life scaring me that way." Mina told him and patted her heart.

"I'm sorry Miss. Arlington. I tried to get your attention you but you weren't listening."

Mina waved a hand. "It's okay. Actually," she gave him a speculative look. "You can be of some help to me now that you are here. Didn't Mr. Arlington give you a spare key for his place in case he misplaced his?"

Angelo shifted his feet uncomfortably. "He did but I'm not sure I should give it to you." 

"Oh come on. I'm his sister. It's not as if I'm one of his murderous lovers that he's trying to dodge."

"But the reason I came up here is because Mr. Arlington called down to say he had an unwelcome element that needed to be rid off. I'm not sure it would be such a good idea."

"Oh he did, did he?" Mina's eyes narrowed dangerously. Calling security now was he? Fine, if he wanted to play it that way. 

She wiped away the look in her eyes and turned on her charm. Angelo took one look at her and stepped back warily. 

"Now Miss. Arlington. Please, he will be very mad at me."

"Angelo…." Mina advanced on him, her eyes shining like diamonds, her face glowing with promise and her body radiating charm. 

Angelo did not have a chance. Three minutes later Mina closed the door behind her with a firm click, the charming exterior she had used in front of Angelo gone and in its stead was the determined look of a vengeful angel. Set security on her, did he?! 

She strode down the marble hallways, her eyes not registering any of the luxurious decorations and beauty that had kept many other women enthralled as they entered those very doors. Knowing the place inside out, she walked through the maze of rooms and headed straight for the master bedroom at the very end of the penthouse. 

She opened the door with such a force that it slammed against the wall with a satisfying volume. From beneath the covers of the huge king-size bed that rose like an island from the floor, Mina could hear the soft muttering of an oath. The weasel kept on trying to dig himself further into the bed. 

Mina strode over to the window, minding her step from the clothes littered on the floor, and pulled open the drapes. Sunlight flooded the room. From underneath the green coverlet there was a slight shifting but still no surfacing.

Ok. 

Mina took her time to walk over to the stand where a vase held a bouquet of roses. She lifted the vase and went into the bathroom humming under her breath. Gently she took the rose from the vase and poured out the water. She replaced it with new once and took great deal of care in setting the flower back. Carrying the vase with both of her hand she walked back to the bedroom. From underneath the coverlet a distinctive snoring sound was emerging.

Mina rolled her eyes heavenward and shrugged. Still humming she walked over to the bedside, making sure that she wasn't blocking the direct sunlight, bent down, took hold of the coverlet and yanked with all her might. 

She had the pleasure of seeing his face writhe and grimace in pain as the sun blazed on his face before she turned her wrist slightly and poured the content in her hand right over his head.

The swearing became a shout and then more cursing and arms flailing and body twisting. Mina took a step backwards and enjoyed the view. 

Jaycen Arlington, twenty seven years old, termed as one of the sexiest men in the world by magazines all across the globe at least once a year since he reached his twenties, and working as a the head architect at one of the largest and most prestigious building companies in the world certainly didn't give off any of the style or elegance that he was known for at the moment. 

Mina twisted her head slightly to the side. Too bad she didn't have a camera with her. She wondered how much a picture of the golden Adonis with his butt in the air and head on the ground would give. 

"Bloody hell, Mina! I'll kill you." Jay roared and groaned in pain at the same time. He had to stop the tugging of the sheet that he had somehow managed to twist himself into during the night and clutch his head. 

"Well I wouldn't have had been that heartless if you hadn't sicked the security at me." Mina told him. She could not keep the grin off her face but she figured since he was laying with his face against the ground the chances of him seeing her was null. She was careful of keeping the laughter from her voice.

"If I knew Angelo was working I would have called the cops instead." Jay muttered under his breath and finally managed to twist himself free to rise from the bed. 

Mina shook her head. "You know that wouldn't work. I have friends in that precinct too." 

"Not on thirty first." Jay shot back over his shoulder as he wrapped in one of the sheet, went in to the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

Mina puffed a breath. "That's hardly in the area. Just because a girl makes a mistake one time and they never let you live through it. I was eighteen at that time, for god's sake."

The sound of water running, told her that she would not get any answers there. 

Mina cast a glance at the watch on her wrist. Half an hour left and before her audition and one hour before Rei's flight arrived. She was going to have to hurry, which means she was going to have to sweet talk Jay fast. So throwing ice cold water on him was not the wisest thing to make him cooperate. What was done was done. She would just have to get herself back in his good graces.

She headed for the kitchen and started rummaging around. Strange thing was despite eating most of his meals outside; Jay had a surprisingly well stacked pantry and fridge. It wasn't so hard thinking up what to make for breakfast when there was such variety of choices. 

By the time Jay was finished with his shower and entered the kitchen, Mina had a fresh pot of coffee brewed; a few slices of bread toasted and was just finishing off frying the omelet.

Jay gave her a suspicious look when she set the plate of food in front of him by the counter. Instead of taking a seat by the table where she had set up for him, he had opted to sit on one of the barstools at the counter, close to the coffee machine. 

"Rough night?" Mina asked innocently and poured herself a cup of coffee too. She might as well make the most use of it.

Jay took one look at her and muttered. "Gutter mind." He took his moment to drink the coffee but he did not touch the food.

"I wasn't thinking that." Mina told him smugly. "As a matter of fact I could see from the lack of female clothing in your room that you didn't score last night."

"Score?" One blonde brow arched.

"Well isn't that how you men phrase it?" 

Jay shook his head. "You should stop looking at those soap operas of yours and spend some time in reality. For your information I was out all night on business." He muttered something about crazy Russians and their vodkas.

Mina made a huffed sound. A voice mentally reminded her to keep focus. She glanced at the clock on the wall. 

"Jay…"

"Great, here it comes." Jay grumbled.

"What do you mean "Here it comes"?" Mina demanded suspiciously.

Blue eyes darker and sharper than hers, fixed on hers and she was once again reminded of the man she had heard rumors about, the ruthless businessman whom could act like a shark when the opponent showed a weakness. 

"You're sucking up to me. At least as far as in your lame harebrained way of thinking."

"What's so harebrained about a loving sister cooking breakfast for her brother?" Mina demanded and set down her cup with an angry click. The coffee sloshed over the rim, giving off droplets of brown liqueur on the gray surface. 

"First of all, my loving sister. You don't try to ask a person favor by giving them cancer, which I might add is a certainty by eating your cooking." 

He took a fork and lifted the darkened toast. 

"So they're a bit dark. Just scrape off the top. It's toast, they're supposed to be colored."

"Golden, yes. Brownish yes. But not coal black. And what about eggs? I don't remember Remy serving burned eggs for their customers, do you?" 

Heat stained Mina's cheeks. "Its called well done, you idiot. Eating raw egg is not good for you. Don't you read anything aside from-" At his arched arrogantly look, she clamped her teeth together so hard it jarred her all the way to the back of her mind.

"Oh fine," She threw up her hands in the air. "You win. Yes I do have something of a favor to ask of you."

"Thought as much." Jay told her smugly. "And the answer is no." He grabbed his mug and walked over to the table to take a seat. Lounging back with an arrogant pose, he grabbed the newspaper and started rifling through it.

"You haven't even heard what I'm going to ask yet." Mina gave a strangled sound. 

"No but it's not hard to guess. You might like to run those silly errands for the clan but I've got better things to do with my time than play keeper to them. Give it up Mina, they're adults. Its time they started handling their own problems."

Mina closed her eyes and secretly begged for patience. The two of them have had this conversation over and over again in the past, without coming to any conclusion. As far as Jay was concerned everyone should mind their own business. He didn't seem to feel that it was his duty, that he owed it to Madame, if nobody else, to help out with these family situations the way Mina felt. 

"Look I don't have the time to go through this with you again."

"Then don't." He turned the page, the sound rustling and cutting the otherwise peaceful silence. As far up as they were, the sound of traffic wouldn't be able to carry up anyhow.

Mina fell down on her knees and pulled the paper down from at the same time so that she could look him in the face. "Will you do it for me? I'm not asking for them I'm asking as a favor to me, your own sister." 

He watched her steadily, taking in the begging look in her eyes and in the end he let out a sigh. "Fine. Whatever. Only because you're begging me." 

Mina gave him a beatific smile. "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you. I won't forget this." She threw herself at him and hugged him fiercely. 

Jay coughed and made wheezing sounds. 

"I'll owe for this. You don't know how much this means to me. I swear I'll make it up to you somehow. You know at times like these you're the best brother a sister could ever have?"

She kept on babbling a while longer until she noticed him tapping her shoulder and trying to pry her arms. Then she heard him whisper. "Mina. Air. Windpipe."

"Oh sorry." She quickly released him and threw a sheepish grin. 

Massaging his throat at the same time as he shot her a dark look, Jay asked. "So what is it that you need me to do? Mind you I have an important meeting I need to get back to the office to later, so it can't be something that takes the whole day. And I refuse. I absolutely refuse to go on shopping trip with either Marcia, Alicia or Mother. I would have added anything to do with them but I suppose that would be out of the question since eight out of then errands you do are for them."

"Well here's the thing, I promised Martin I would pick Rei up from the airport and then I got this call from Chauncy. She managed to get me an audition for a de Marco movie. Can you believe that? A de Marco movie? We're talking about the guy who won two Oscars in a row plus the Cannes last year, not to mention countless of others awards. This could be my dream come through. I could –" 

"Ok, hold it. Slow down a bit." Jay held up his hand. "Who the hell is Rei?"

Mina blinked. She was already visioning walking down the red carpet for the Oscar award next year. "She's Marcus' daughter. She's coming from Japan today and I promised I would pick her up at the airport at one o'clock. Since my audition at half past twelve well that just leaves me…" she glanced at the clock. "Holy shit FIFTEEN MINUTES TO GET READY!" 

She bent down and gave her brother quick peck on the cheek. "Ok here's the info on her flight that I wrote down." She pulled out a slip of paper from her purse and set it on the table. "Remember one o'clock. Thanks a bunch. I won't forget this." She called over her shoulder as she ran for the exit.

"Hold on wait a minute." Jay jumped up and tried to follow but it was like trying to catch a whirlwind. He stood by the threshold watching the elevator door close behind her smiling face, a resigned look on his face. Rubbing a hand over the back of his neck he muttered. 

"And how the hell am I supposed to know how she looks like?"

* * *

AN: I know that things might be a bit confusing right now concerning who is who in the Holden clan and how Jay and Mina are connected to the family. But I promise that as soon as Rei enters the picture things will become clearer. Remember, she is the star in this story, you don't get to know before she does. ^-^ Don't worry an index will be coming up to help you out there and hopefully a family tree on my website. 

Oh and I changed Rei's father's name to Marcus instead of James, since I find that name suits him better. 

Thank you for your patience and for the reviews. I hope you'll keep having patience with me and this story and follow it to the end since both Rei and Jay has a long way to go before they fulfill their destiny. 

Next chapter will be posted in approximately a week or less. 

// Fenix


	3. A vision

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. The great Naoko Taekuchi does and all those companies holding the license yada yada yada…. 

** Chapter 3: A vision **

By Lady Fenix 

Nathan Maxfield was focusing hard on the legal papers he held in his hand. He already knew most of the details by heart, but it never hurt to go through the paper once again just to see if he missed anything or in this case if the opposite side had added things. 

The music industry was one hell of a business branch to deal with. Lawsuit regarding copyright infringement came often and it did not matter that _Roman Records_ was large enough of a company to have an army of lawyers to take care of it, every second week a case appeared that his assistants found too difficult and which they required his personal attention. If it wasn't for his love for music and the fact that abandoning this branch would prove his father right, Nathan seriously considered selling the company and focusing on his other interests. _Roman Records_ generated enough annual revenues to interest a lot of people and he was sure he could make a lot of money on it, but when one was already worth ten billion dollars, another million or so didn't matter. 

For him it had never been about the money as much as the passion and the thrill of winning a deal; of making a success and knowing that you had been right from the start. Which was why he was damned if he was going to let a newly graduated Yale student think he can use him as a springboard and make a name for himself. The money they asked wasn't much but it was the principle of the matter. The woman signed the contract and even if the man representing Roman had turned out to be a dubious character, the matter had been settled and the woman had been compensated already. 

Nathan didn't think of himself as an unreasonable man. He wasn't trying to cheat a single mom with two babies of their livelihood. And damn it he was not a monster!

"Will you stop glaring at me?" Finally unable to take it anymore, he fired the demand at the violet eyed woman sitting opposite him on the lounge of the slim private jet. Just how the hell did she manage to sit completely still for hours like that? 

"Why feeling guilty?" She shot back and continued to throw daggers at him with her eyes. 

"No but it sure as hell makes it hard to concentrate when you can feel someone trying to murder you with her eyes."

"You should be glad that's all I'm doing. If it weren't for the fact that I don't want to make my best friend an early widow and my goddaughter fatherless…" She left the threat hanging.

"I'm sure they're grateful for your restraint." Nathan told her dryly finally able to find some humor in the whole situation. They both knew from an earlier experience that he could match her when it came to hand to hand combat. 

Rei tossed her black hair over her shoulder in her typical arrogant way. "Don't be too smug, Don Juan. I knew Mako didn't want you seriously injured back then. If I truly wanted to hurt you, you wouldn't stand a chance." 

He believed that too. In his vast experience with women, there had been few who had impressed him the way the trio had when he first met them four years ago.

"Ok," He held up his hand, conceding defeat, "so forcing you to board the plane with me was not a very gentlemanly thing to do. But seriously, would you have come if I hadn't forced the issue?"

When she opened her mouth and could not utter a sound, he knew he got her there.

Despite the years it still amazed Nathan every time he was shown the closeness that Mako, Rei and Ami shared. When he had seen Rei enter the gate, he had been sure both Mako and Ami were wrong about her chickening out in the end but to his amazement just when the boarding was ended there she came, skulking out like a thief in the night. Of course since the move had been anticipated, he had cut her off on her way to the train back to the city and had instead dragged her loudly and protesting towards the gate where is own private jet was waiting for take off. 

"It still doesn't give you the right to kidnap me." Rei snapped at him after a moment of silence and started tapping her foot. 

Nathan gritted his teeth and seriously contemplated the thought of tossing the woman out of the plane. Maybe he could claim it was an accident? Or that she absolutely refused to stay on the plane and there was nothing he could to stop her? 

A picture of Mako's accusing eyes appeared in front of him and he sighed. No, that wouldn't work. At least, not anymore. Not when they were already about to reach their destination. He should have tossed her out on her rear when he had the chance. He didn't have anyone to blame but himself truly. It was what he got for involving himself in female business. Trying to please one of Mako's best friends immediately got himself into trouble with the other. Women, there was just no pleasing them. Well with the certain exception of a green eyed Amazon, he conceded with a smug smile. 

"Urgh. There you go again. Would you keep your dirty thoughts about my friend until at least when you're alone?" Rei demanded.

If it had been Ami, Nathan would have been more sensitive but since it wasn't, he only smiled smugly and drawled. "It's my plane. If you don't like it, you can always leave."

He lit a cigarette and took a slow arrogant drag.

Rei scowled. "Haven't you heard about non-smoking flights?" She demanded and started waving her hand in front of her to ward off the smoke.

The only reply he gave was to throw her a devilish look and exhaled slowly. The fragile smoke came out in a spiraling haze. She reacted by throwing up her hands in the air and giving off a frustrated scream that sent the stewardess running. 

"I don't understand how Mako can stand you. She must be on _pills!_" 

The stewardess cast an inquiring glance at Nathan, who in turn nodded his head and signaled her to leave them alone. 

Used to her rants and raves now, he let her steam off, knowing deep down that it was not exactly him who was the source of her anger though he was the aim at the moment. Sigh, the things he put up with out of love. 

For the next thirty minutes before they landed on the private part of La Guardia airport, the two of them kept on exchanging insults back and fort. This was probably the first time that either of them had spent so much time alone without the presence of either Mako or Ami and Nathan got to know his wife's childhood friend on a whole other level. For example he now understood where Mako came up with all her insulting name calling and inventive curses. For such a beautiful face, Rei's appearance sure was deceptive. 

There was of course also a fragile side to her, one that was not as easy to glimpse in the company of her other friends due to her protective nature. Now that she didn't have others that she needed to protect, Rei was not as able to hide her emotions and Nathan was shown another side of her. 

While La Guardia was a smaller airport than JFK, it had enough traffic coming in and out to warrant the crowd of people milling the place. As they reached the great hall where the custom counters were lined up, the party of people grew thicker and louder and Rei took an instinctive step closer to Nathan. He knew that it wasn't the crowd that made her uncomfortable as much as the sounds and the attitudes of the people. It was a far cry from the well mannered Japanese she was used to. There were a lot that could be said about the Americans but New Yorkers were a different group of people in themselves, with their bad ass attitude. Rei got her first experience of that starting with the woman sitting behind the counter. 

She gave Nathan the usual questions, having been through these procedures a hundred times before Nathan took no offense. Actually he found it pleasant to talk to the woman; her attitude only reminded him how much he had missed the place and how good it felt to be home again. Rei on the other hand did take offence and would have started an argument with the lady if Nathan hadn't quickly intervened. In the end it was a mixture of a lot of fast talking on his part and the fact that some of the officials there recognized him that he prevented the woman from taking Rei into custody. 

With a firm hold on Rei's elbow, Nathan steered Rei towards the exit where his limo was waiting.

"Straight home, sir?" Charles his ever present chauffer when he visited New York asked.

"No just take us to the city. I'll let you know as you get closer."

"As you wish, sir."

"You are sure about this?" Nathan asked Rei as Charles set the car moving. "There's plenty of space at the penthouse. Mako will be here in a few days and I'm sure she will love to have you close by."

Rei stopped her observation of the view outside the window and turned to Nathan to give him her first true smile since they started this trip together. "Yes I'm sure. Just drop me off in a comfortable and modest hotel and I'll check in there. I don't want to impose on you."

"You know that we don't think of it that way."

"I know but I do. Besides you've already helped me enough. I want to rely on myself." Rei told him calmly. 

Nathan understood that and in a way he even admired her for her conviction, integrity and backbone. They were traits that all three of the friends shared. "Take us to the Ceasar's, Charles."

The driver gave an affirmative answer and continued to drive.

Rei barely gave them much thought as all her attention was focused on the scenery outside. Even through the toned glass, the sky looked bright. It contrasted greatly with the gray and brown walls of the buildings and the sides of the bridges. Somehow when she pictured New York this wasn't exactly what she had in mind. She was thinking more in terms of skylines made of chrome and glass, reaching for the heaven like silver and black spears. 

She waited for something to register in her head, something that would trigger a childhood memory but nothing. Her mind was blank and everything that she saw was new to her. 

New York, the Big Apple. She couldn't believe that she was actually back again. The last time she been in this city was when she and her mom were leaving the country and heading back to Japan. Seventeen years, seventeen years has passed and once again she was back again. 

They approached Manhattan and the famous skylines that New York was known for, appeared in sight. Rei watched the buildings with pleasure; while she preferred the low buildings and open spaces the artistic part of her could enjoy the beauty of watching those gleaming walls as they competed over attention. 

The streets were packed with people. Rei watched with fascination as all kinds of people walked past, some wearing furs and others leathers, some carrying backpacks and others expensive looking purses and portfolios. A few were running over the street without the slightest hesitations of the oncoming traffic. Rude honking sound followed them and to her shock instead of apologizing or looking sheepish some shouted profanities back at the drivers and one even gave the finger. Did these people have a death wish of some sort?

The limo stopped in front of an elegant looking building with gleaming warm mahogany colored marble walls. Rei felt like a movie star when she accepted Nathan's hand and stepped out of the car. Color warmed her cheeks when she felt the looks of some of the passersby. She could just imagine how it looked, especially with Nathan around. Not for the first time she had to concede he made a picture in his Italian suit and dark handsome looks. The long hair only added a rugged and dangerous appearance. She was more than aware of the envious looks she received from the women as Nathan led her inside. The ones that annoyed her however were the hostile ones. 

The rebellious part of Rei reacted to those unfriendly looks and instead of being uncomfortable at the clearly very luxurious surroundings of which she was not used to, Rei took her strength from stares and straightened her back. She lifted her other arm so that both of hers linked with Nathan's and threw the women a look over her shoulder along with a feline smile. 

Nathan chuckled softly. "Tone down on the power, Rei. Or the press will get a totally different kind of juice to write about." 

Rei slanted him a look. "Afraid, are you?"

Nathan's lips quirked into the resemblance of a smile. "And Mako and Ami were actually worried about you. Girl, you look more like you're out to draw blood."

"It's just their protective nature." Rei told him absently and surveyed her surroundings. "Nathan, when I meant comfortably suited hotel, I meant my kind of comfort. This place reeks money. I can't afford to stay here."

"Don't worry. Their ordinary rooms are a lot cheaper than it gives impression of. It's close to most of the attractions and most importantly, it's safe." Nathan murmured to her in a soothing voice. His eyes caught the matron behind the reception desk and he signaled with his eyes towards Rei. The matron catching his meaning nodded his head ever so slightly. 

"Yes what can I help you with?" The girl behind the desk asked when Nathan and Rei approached.

"I have room booked under the name of Rei Hino." Nathan told her. 

Rei gave him a startled look.

"Excuse me, sir. How's does the name spell?"

Nathan spelled it for her. As the woman began to check in her register, Rei whispered softly. "I thought you wanted me stay with you guys at the penthouse. How can you have a room booked for me then?"

"I had a feeling you might decline the offer so I went ahead and booked it, just in case." Nathan told her and leaned negligently against the counter. He looked like he was posing for an add selling expensive cologne. 

"I'm sorry sir, but I can't find the name here." The woman told him.

Turning his attention back to the receptionist, Nathan frowned. "I'm sure there must be mistake. I specifically phoned a head ordering a budget room for Miss Hino here."

"I'm sorry sir but –" 

"Is there a problem here?" The matron, Nathan had signaled to earlier, joined his colleague behind the counter. 

The woman explained the situation to him. The matron frowned and tapped a few keys on the keyboard. "It seems like we have a slight problem with our register at the moment. However it's a minor obstacle that can easily be corrected. I remember Thomas taking that booking, Linda. And you must be Mr. Maxfield I presume?" The matron gave Nathan an inquiring look. At the affirmative nod, he continued. "Yes you were the one that made the booking. Very well here's your card. Miss," He took up the card that came out from a machine and handed it to Rei with a charming smile. "I hope you enjoy your stay."

"Thank you." Rei replied and took the offered card.

Nathan took hold of her elbow and gently guided her towards the elevator. "What number does the card say?" He asked.

While she was busy looking at the card, Nathan caught hold of the matron's eyes and gave him an approving nod. The matron beamed at him once before he turned his attention back to his coworker who was making protesting sounds. 

"607E." 

"Good that's at least high enough to avoid the sound of traffic. Lets just hope you room faces the inner garden." Nathan told her and quickened his steps slightly and unnoticeably. He did not want any of the explanations given to the woman to reach Rei's ears. The last thing he wanted was for her to find out that he was in fact arranging for her to stay in one of the rooms at his hotel. Not that it was a well known fact since the hotel belonged to one of his many subsidiaries, still he wasn't about to take that chance knowing how stubborn Rei could be. He respected her wishes but it didn't mean he couldn't make sure that the place she stayed in during her visit was safe. 

It turned out that Manning, as usual, had excellent taste. The room he had chosen for Rei was situated just at the corner, giving plenty of excellent view of the streets on both sides. The sound of traffic was not audible and Nathan expected no less, after all a lot of work and money had been spent to make sure that the hotel gave the best quality for their guests. For a first timer in New York, corner rooms, on this side, was a very good choice. 

"Not bad. It would have been better if you have gotten the windows facing the inner garden though." Nathan noted as he walked over to the window.

Rei set down her purse on the nightstand and rolled her eyes. "Now you're sounding like a snob again. It's a perfectly fine room. In fact it's great. I like the design: very tasteful and has a comfortable feel to it. Now that you've gotten me safe and sound here, why don't you run along? I'm sure you have a busy schedule ahead of you counting the zillions of money you've made in the last few days and terrorizing your employees." 

Nathan turned around so that he was facing her. "Mako's been snitching again." He told her in an accusative tone of voice. 

Rei smiled and walked over to the window. Leaning on her toes and surprising him, she kissed him fondly on the cheek. "She's also right when she says you can be adorable sometimes. But seriously, Nate, I'm going to be fine. Just take care of your own business." 

__

Adorable? He was going to have a serious talk with his wife. If she kept spreading these rumors about him he'll never be able to show his face again. 

"Very well." He conceded. "I took the liberty of asking Patricia to prepare this for you." He took out a small cell phone from his jacket and put it in Rei's hand. "There's a list of numbers there including my personal cell phone. Just call me if you need help with anything. There's also the phone to the limo. Charles will be at your disposal if you need transportation. Don't take the subs."

Warring emotions battled within her. She was touched by his consideration and obvious care of her and at the same time she felt annoyance too at being treated as a child. 

Nathan stopped in the hallway and looked back at her with his head tilted to the side. "You know this is probably the first time I've seen you speechless. Have to say when you don't speak, you can actually give an impression of being a nice person." He mused. 

Rei growled deeply from her throat. Unable to think of a nasty enough description to describe him, she opted at slamming the door in his face. Not that it helped much since she could hear his deep chuckles disappear down the hallway. Against her will she felt a smile tug too.

How did Mako stay sane around a man like Nathan? Still he wasn't half so bad, for a man that is and looked at the cell phone in her hand.

Well since it was given to her, she might as well make the most use of it. Flipping open the lid, she easily found Mako's name on the list of numbers programmed in the phone. Rei knew that if she didn't report safely to Mako, it was plausible her friend would send out the National Guard to look for her. 

The call was brief, at least for a conversation between the two of them. The reason for that was because Grace was hungry and demanded to be fed. For a young toddler she was already showing promises of a fine temper. The two of them promised to catch up later in the night when Grace was safely tucked into bed. 

Rei was a bit surprised later on when there was knock on her door later. At first she thought it was Nathan who came back to continue to play big brother on her. But instead there was a bellman dressed in an immaculate maroon uniform, claiming to be delivering her luggage. Since she knew she didn't bring anything but the small cabin bag she carried as a hand luggage, Rei had a couple of interesting minutes with the young man until she took more careful look at the bags. They looked awfully familiar. The puzzle was solved when she opened one of them and found a piece written with very familiar neat handwriting. It seems Ami had been a couple of steps ahead of Rei as usual and taken the liberty to pack, in her view, a more suitable traveling kit.

Rei shook her head. Was she really that transparent? She could almost hear two familiar voices shouting in her head: yes. She could also hear them admonish and berate her for being a coward and pushing things off. 

Sighing, she knew the time for procrastination was over. Sooner or later she would have to face what she came here for.

Taking out the small address book from her purse, Rei looked up the phone number Martin had given her. 

After the third signal, Rei was already ready to hang up when the other side picked up the line and a dark but cultured voice said, "Holden."

Rei was silent for a moment. 

"Hello? Is there anybody there?"

"Hi. Uhm… is this Martin?" Rei inquired, sitting down on the bed. 

"Yes, who is this?"

Rei bit her lips. "I'm Rei. Rei Hino. Marcus' daughter."

"Rei?! It's so good to hear from you. But how come you're calling now? Aren't you supposed to be still in the air? Nothing's wrong I hope?"

Realizing what he thought, Rei quickly assured him that that wasn't the case. "My plane got in earlier. I'm at the hotel right now." The last thing she wanted to say was that her friends had forced her to board another plane because they knew she would bail out in the end. 

"Oh that's good." He sounded a bit absently and it sent her heart plummeting to the stomach. "Listen I'm just about to start a meeting, do you think you can take a cab over to the office and meet me here in, say, two o'clock?"

"Uhm… yes sure. Just tell me the address." Her heart came back to its ordinary place.

"Huh? Oh yes, yes. How careless of me, of course you wouldn't remember the address." He told the address and gave her the description. "It's hard to miss it. You'll see it as you come up the Third."

The moment the conversation was over Rei let out a deep calming breath. There was no reason for her heartbeat to be beating erratically like this. So it wasn't the world's greatest conversation but it wasn't the worst either. She just wasn't much of a conversationalist especially with people she didn't know and whom acted like they were so chummy with you. It made her uncomfortable. 

Or maybe she was making a hen out of feathers. It could be the whole cultural thing too. Maybe it was just how they conversed on phones. American's she had noted, tended to be less formal than Japanese. Maybe when she met him, things wouldn't feel as awkward. Surely he didn't expect them to just start acting like friends? They were, practically, strangers.

Well she'd know when she got there, she supposed and sighed. 

Half an hour, a quick shower, a change of clothes and a fresh dash of makeup later, Rei walked out of the hotel with a map in her hand and headed out on her first walk around the Big Apple. A quick question at the desk turned out that she wasn't that far from where the main building of Holden Inc. was situated, so Rei decided to save money and use what natured had given her, namely her feet. 

As she walked up Lexington Avenue, Rei was completely fascinated with everything that she saw. It wasn't just the people there though they were interesting enough themselves once she got used to their abrasive loud ways. It seemed all nationalities of the world could be found here. She listened attentively as people chatted in strange foreign languages some beautiful to the ears, some so strange she wondered how they were able to even pronounce it without dislocating their jaw and others sounded like they were arguing or cursing each other. The most important thing was however the _feel_ of the place. The city generated a completely different aura than Tokyo, though both were about the same size. While Tokyo gave her a sense of order and harmony, New York vibrated with life and impatience. The strangest thing was she did not feel as uncomfortable as she would have expected, considering her preference for the quiet life. Even back home she had avoided crowds.

Still musing over the aura she picked up in the air around her, Rei stopped to wait for the traffic light to change signal and looked up the street ahead of her and the buildings lined up there. Martin's description had been a bit vague and as she studied the buildings there she wondered how come he had been so sure she wouldn't miss the buildings. They all looked the same to her, tall, sleek and powerful. 

Then her eyes stopped at the black building, gleaming like an ebony landmark among pale towers and the shock hit her like a fist. Emotional waves washed over her and along with them came memories flooding to the surface after years of being buried in her sub consciousness.

She saw a car stop in front of the entrance of the building and a younger version of herself jumped out laughing and giggling. The girl was shortly joined by a young couple as they also stepped out of the car. The man had dark hair that curled at the nape and wore shades that covered his eyes; eyes that were the same color and shape as the little girl's. Beside the tall man, the woman looked tiny in comparison. Her long raven hair was sleeked back in a neat chignon and she wore a simple red dress. Red was her favorite color, just as gray was his. The couple smiled at the girl and took each of her offered hand to hold as she dragged them inside. They smiled at each other and entered the building, like a happy family; at least that's what had been assumed of them back then. 

Lies, though. It had been nothing but lies. A dream built in lies, which had soon come crashing down, leaving nothing but rubble and shattered remains of the broken heart of a woman who had loved too much. 

The vision disappeared and sensing the traffic light was just about to change, Rei still with her head on the building, started walking.

The moment she took a step out on the street, warning bells rang in her head and she heard the loud angry blast of a horn. Turning her face, she saw a car coming straight at her. There was a large screeching sound of someone hitting the break. Air rushed towards her. She heard screams and shouts around her. 

* * *

AN: Ok I'll give you one guess who the driver in the car is. ^-^ I know it wasn't very nice of me to end it here but it felt right since the tone will change slightly in the next chapter. I know that a lot of you have been looking forward to having them meet and but I hope this chapter wasn't too much of a disappointment for you. Rei and Jay will come face to face in the in the next chapter that is for certain. 

My thanks to everyone for their reviews. Kayla, don't worry, there will be another dysfunctional member showing up in the next chapter. ;) And Firenze, since you put out a special request I've tried to accompany you to my best effort. It might not be exactly what you had envisioned but I hope it won't be too disappointing for you. =)Anyone else who has a special request? 

A special thanks to two wonderful fanfic writers K.Wyse, for her support and Charliechaplin2, my wonderful beta reader for correcting my grammar and giving the great advices. Unfortunately for me and for you guys, CC2 is having a well deserved break and so you're going to have to endure my lousy English until she returns.

Next chapter will hopefully be out in a week, might take a bit longer though since I'm missing a beta now. Things are written much faster when you have someone to bounce ideas with. =)


	4. A headache

Disclaimer: Don't own Sailor Moon. Dirt poor at the moment so don't sue.

** Chapter 4: A headache ** By Lady Fenix 

Rei fell; hard. Pain shot up her backside and jarred her all the way up to the teeth. Recovering quickly she brushed away the helping hands that were offered to her and came to her feet. Through the red haze of anger she could hear the buzzing sound of people talking but the words didn't register in her head. Her eyes were focused on the blonde driver's face that stuck out from the open window as she marched over to the gleaming silver car that had nearly run her down. 

She could not hear what he was saying, whether it was the roaring in her head or the babbling voices of the people around her she didn't know but she was however able to read his lips and thus able to answer him. 

"No I'm not alright. Why don't you watch how you're driving, you maniac?!" She shouted towards the man and emphasized her feelings by banging a fist against the hood. The metal gave off a satisfying sound. 

"Hey! Stop that, you crazy woman!" The man ordered. 

Hearing that, Rei's eyes shot fire and she banged her fist on the hood again. This time the ring she wore on her finger rapped against the hood. "Don't call me names, you homicidal driver! Who do the hell do you think you are? You don't own this road, you know."

The man swore, took off his seat belt and stepped out of the car. Having looked down her nose at the man, Rei was slightly taken aback by the man's height as he approached her. He was tall, nearly as tall as Nathan, which meant he was at least a head taller than her. It made her feel like a midget but she would rather walk through fire than reveal that especially to the angry man.

"Look woman, if don't stop attacking my car I'm going to have to call the cops and have you arrested for destroying private property." The man glowered at her, his blue eyes shooting lightning bolts.

He was standing so close to her that he was practically looming over her. Not the least intimidated, Rei lifted her chin and replied with blazing eyes. "Go ahead and call the cops and let's see how you're going to explain trying to run over a civilian."

"Hey you're the suicidal fool who was jaywalking." 

Rei didn't know what jaywalking meant but she certainly caught the meaning. "The signal was changing." She waved her hand towards the signal and nearly slapped the man's face. 

Blue eyes narrowed and a scowl darkened his face as he dodged her hand. "I'm warning you, don't get physical with me." He said in a dangerous low tone,

Rei blinked. He thought she was trying to attack him?

"Hey stop trying to intimidate her, you jerk." Someone shouted from the sidelines. 

"Yeah, just because you drive around in a fancy car doesn't mean you own the road." Another voice shouted.

"Hey give the guy some slacks will ya? She's the one who walked out in front of him!" A third voice joined the shouting. 

"You go, sister!"

Both of them gave a start and took a good look around. It seems they were gathering up quite a crowd. Some were wearing looks of angry scowls directed at the driver and others threw disapproving looks at her. A few were just standing curiously at the sidelines watching. 

An officer came over and pushed through the crowd. "What's the meaning of this?" The portly man asked. 

In answer to that several voices started talking all at once; all trying to give their versions of the stories – all that is except for the parties involved.

"Great, this is just what I need." The driver muttered and dragged a hand through his blonde locks. 

Rei's feeling wasn't that far off either. Now that she had had time to cool off, she was also able to think more clearly and from the way people were talking she realized that the fault may not have exactly been just the man's. She had been slightly occupied when she stepped out on the street. 

"Well do we take this down at the station?" The officer demanded. From the tone of his voice it was clear that he found the whole thing silly. 

The man looked down at Rei. Rei was silent, absently biting her lower lip.

"Don't worry, miss." Someone said from behind her. "I saw everything and I'll be glad to represent you in case you want justice dealt." Before she could react a business card was showed into her hand. Startled Rei looked over her shoulder at the man wearing an immaculate dark suit and an eager smile. She looked down at the card: **_Jones & Associates_**. Thinking of suing? We get the job done. 

He wanted her to _sue_?

"Well, miss?" The officer asked. The question was directed to her but he was giving the lawyer a disgusted look that said volumes of what he thought about such an underhanded tactic. 

Rei glanced at the driver. His face was stony and those blue eyes have turned completely cool and detached. He was clearly waiting for her reply. Obviously he was expecting her to take up the other guy's offer.

Rei felt like laughing hysterically. Was this for real? She nearly expected someone to jump out and tell her she was being filmed in one of those Candid Camera shows. This was insane! 

"Well, Miss? I don't have the whole day. Are we taking this back to the station or what?" The officer demanded in what Rei thought was a very rude tone. Clearly his patience was running thin. 

"No." Rei shook her head. "It was a slight accident. Neither the driver nor I are hurt. There's no need to take this any further." 

She heard a loud protest from behind her which she choice to ignore. 

"What about you, mister" The officer turned to the driver. 

Rei looked up and was surprised when instead of looking at the officer the driver was watching her speculatively. "No. That won't be necessary, officer." The driver told him. 

"Fine, then clear out and go about your business. If I find the two of you holding up traffic again, I'm going to fine the both you, got that?" The officer gave them both a look that clearly spoke of his less than flattering thoughts of them and this whole situation. 

Rei felt her hackles rise and only the sight of his uniform kept her from giving the man a piece of her mind. The driver only gave the man a bored look. He glanced at Rei and then without a word, turned and walked back into his car. The engine came to life with a roaring sound, much like a lion's. Rei standing close to the car could feel it vibrating with life. 

"Look, lady if you're still playing around with any thought of committing suicide I suggest you find another car to use. I'm busy. So I'd clearly advice you to step aside." The driver told Rei coolly, leaning out of the window. 

Heat rose up Rei's cheek. The arrogant jerk actually thought she was trying to commit suicide? She thought about kicking in his car.

"I wouldn't even think about doing that if I were you." He warned her as if having read her mind. "Or this time I'll be hauling your ass to the station." 

Rei had the childish urge to stick out her tongue at the guy. 

"Thank you." He said when she stepped away from the car. It sounded more like a feudal lord dismissing his peasant than any thank you Rei had ever heard. 

"Arrogant jerk." Rei muttered under her breath and watched the silver vehicle continue towards its destination.

~ o ~

From the rear mirror, Jay watched the dark haired Asian woman cross the street with brisk steps and shook his head. Yet another crazy bizarre incident to highlight his day.

Today was fast turning into one of the worst days in his life. The business dinner last night went smoothly enough, except that the Russians insisted on sealing their deal with a toast. Or, he corrected, hundreds of toasts. He was sure he lost count somewhere along two in the morning. Actually the hours after that was a complete blur. He remembered a lot of _na zdorovje_ and even some singing. He wasn't sure about it but he seems to have a vague memory of him standing on top of a table with Igor the leader of the group, singing their national song. He cringed at that, he truly hoped that was only a part of his dreams. There had been singing Russians in his dream, he recalled. All he remembered was stumbling through his door and literally crawling to his bed at seven in the morning.

The arrival of his beloved sister at eleven something this morning was a like a present from hell. Despite the distance, he could hear each bang she gave to the door and it was like having sledgehammers play drums on his head. The experience certainly felt as pleasant. He haven't experienced a hangover like that since the time he and Darien, thirteen and cocky as only teenagers could be, stumbled across Gramps private store of whiskey and partied all night. 

He should have known Mina wouldn't give up that easily and he should have anticipated the kind of retaliation she'd give. After all even as a kid she could be vicious when pushed, not that he played fairly either, Jay conceded, but that was beside the point. He was still her one and only brother and there had been no need to take such extreme action. The shock treatment she had given him nearly had his heart going into cardiac arrest. The shower and the aspirins he took restored enough balance to him that he thought he could deal with the day. Until of course he was roped into another one of Mina's idiot schemes. 

Thinking about the time spent at the airport put a dark scowl on Jay's handsome face. And temper had him turning the wheel with enough force to make the tire screech and leave marks on the pavement as he entered the underground garage of Holden Inc.'s. 

Just how the hell they had expected him to find one stranger in a blasted airport the size of JFK with only a flight number and a name was beyond his comprehension. Pride had prevented him from holding the stupid sign that Mina had prepared saying "_Welcome to America, Miss Rei Hino."_. She had actually written a god damn sign! Well Mina might enjoy being in the spotlight no matter what but he had absolutely refused to make a fool out of himself. He could just imagine the kick the reporters would have gotten out of that if someone had recognized him and taken a picture. The only positive he could think about concerning that corny sigh was that it might have prevented him from being attacked by a crazy woman. 

At the thought of the small Asian woman back at the airport, Jay unconsciously massaged his right shoulder as stepped out of his car and headed for the elevators. 

He had approached the woman because she had had worn a resemblance to the picture of Rei that he had once managed to catch a glimpse of; actually the right words to use would be tried to approach. He should have read the signs when she started walking faster the moment he called out to her but he had been too annoyed by the whole situation itself. Tapping her lightly on the shoulder certainly had not been a wise move. The next thing he knew, he had a screaming lunatic whacking him with a tiny purse that felt like it must be carrying bricks inside; shouting and screaming in some foreign language. It was all he could do to defend himself before security came to save him. 

After that incident he became a bit leery to approach any Asian woman since all of them seemed to be armed. Instead he had headed for the information desk, something that he realized he should have done from the very beginning, and asked them to call for Rei. Thirty minutes and a few calls later, he acted on a wild hunch and charmed the woman behind the desk to go in and check the passenger record of that particular flight. It turned out the blasted woman hadn't even boarded the flight. 

Simmering with rage, he had taken the drive back to Manhattan using his driving skill to work off some of the temper. He wanted his mind clear for the meeting he was going to have later today. It was fortunate for both of them that he had cooled down enough that he was able to act fast when the dark haired woman had suddenly decided to become the ornament of his car by stepping right out in the street in his path. Not that she had been very grateful of that. Though, he had to admit, she did turn out to be much more reasonable than that the one at the airport. He recalled the way she had surprised him by dropping the issue that quickly.

Still if he never came upon a Far Eastern woman again, it wouldn't be too soon for him. Somehow he had a feeling they meant only trouble for him.

~ o ~

"I have an appointment with Mr. Martin Holden." Rei informed the girl behind the reception desk after being given the routine question of her business here in the building. 

The girl tapped a few keys on her computer and smiled up at Rei, "Yes, Miss Hino, right? Just go straight ahead and take the elevators to the left. Mr. Holden's office is at the seventy fifth floor."

"Thank you."

Rei looked at the mass of people coming in and out of the elevators and let out her breath slowly. Her heart seemed to be beating a bit erratically and strangely her hand was clammy with sweat. As she walked towards the elevator, Rei couldn't help preventing her eyes from scanning the crowed. Were any of them a member of the Holden family? In the short brief meetings she and her father had had throughout the years, Marcus never talked about his family and Rei never made it a point to ask either. Frankly she hadn't wanted to know but now that she was here, she found herself being curious. From the spotty memories she had, she could recall that the family had been quite large, including not just brothers but cousins as well. She wondered if she would be able to recognize any of them if she saw them, without being introduced.

By the time Rei reached the seventy fifth floor she was all alone in the elevator. She didn't suppose a lot of people, except from hotshots, were allowed to enter this level. As the door slid open and revealed the interior of the large reception hall, Rei could understand why too. 

The whole place carried an aura and feel of power and money exhibited through elegance and style. The open space island kind of feel, appealed to her, along with the vegetations grown around the small fountain at the center, which made the place seem like a small botanical garden. Unlike the lobby at the bottom, where chaos reigned and people moved around with a hectic mood, harmony presided over the place like Mother Nature cared for the planet.

A sleek woman in striped gray business suit approached Rei as she stepped out of the elevator. Her red hair was pulled back in a neat bun at the back but wisp of curly hair still came loose, crowning her head like a halo. She smiled and extended her hand. "Hello, you must be Miss Hino. I'm Tracy Conway, Mr. Holden's assistant."

Rei took her offered hand and was surprised at the firm grip. The woman must train regularly. 

"I'm afraid your uncle is still held up at his meeting. He has asked me to show you to his office where he'll be joining you shortly. I hope the arrangement will be satisfactory to you?"

Her style was smooth. When she put the words like that, Rei mused, how was she supposed to refuse without sounding rude? 

When Rei had given her consent, Martin's assistant took her down a wide carpeted hallway and entered the third room to the right. Rei was a bit surprised to find that the room was no bigger than any of the other ones that they had passed. Considering whom he was, Rei had always assumed that Martin's room would look like one of those executive offices that they showed in those Hollywood movies. 

Left alone in the room, Rei sat down on the leather sofa by the wall to wait for Marcus' arrival. She glanced around the place curiously. Everything about the room was toned down; from the choice of furniture to the feelings she received of the place, making her believe that Martin was a very private man. It was a trait that he seemed to share with his brother. 

At the thought about her father, Rei's lips pursed slightly in response. A mix set of emotions settled over her. The hand she had clasped in front of her shook slightly and she could feel the anger building inside her, threatening to erupt like a volcano even as her heart ached. Closing her eyes, Rei emptied her mind and focused on her breathing. She was trying to use meditation to force the turbulent feelings back into the sealed place deep within her heart. It was a trick that her grandfather had taught her as a child, to help her to control her temper; a method that she had found worked really well in the past. Nowadays however it seemed to require more effort, time and concentration. She could feel the familiar headache starting to build in her temples. 

Just when Rei thought she nearly had control again, her ears picked up the sound of loud voices nearing. 

"I told you, Mrs. Holden. Mr. Holden is not in at the moment." The voice belonged to Tracy Conway, the assistant. She sounded agitated.

"Tracy, for the last time, address me by my proper name. It's Mrs. Dumont now." Another voice said in a clipped tone. There was little patience in the woman's tone and not much warmth either. "Considering the size of this company I'm constantly surprised by the quality in the staff here. Can't they afford to hire competent people around here?"

Rei's brows rose slightly in surprise at the obvious insult. Opening her eyes she turned her face towards the door, looking as if she was trying to see through the gleaming wood and the people outside.

"Like I said, you can't go in to Mr. Holden's office. He's already got a visitor waiting in there for him." Tracy told her and her tone was frosty. No doubt the insult had hit bull's eye. 

"Then Martin will just have to reschedule his appointment now, won't he? I'm sure business won't suffer too much if he misses out on one meeting." The woman said with a lofty tone. It was clear from her tone of voice that she didn't seem to think too highly of Martin's work. 

Tracy made a protesting sound but before she could utter anything else the door to the office was pushed open and Rei came face to face with a stunningly looking woman in her late thirties. The woman wore a cream colored blouse and matching pants. The fabric, silk if Rei wasn't missing her guess, draped over her willowy figure in a most complimentary way. Gold winked from her ears, throat and hands but her greatest asset was her fiery red hair; thick, and curly it was pulled up from her face to reveal a swanlike neck and draped artistically over one shoulder. Rei had never seen a hair color as vivid as hers. 

Just like Rei had been assessing the newcomer, so had she returned the favor. As the blue eyes wandered down Rei's simple clothing, her full lips pulled back into something that resembled a smile and a sneer. "I regret to inform you this but there's been a change of schedule, my dear. Mr. Holden is elsewhere busy at the moment so you'll have to reschedule your meeting with him and conduct your business another day." 

Rei didn't know whether it was the condescending ton or the woman's behavior towards Tracy but she decided right then, that she didn't like the newcomer. 

Shooting the woman a half smile of her own, she said in a tone like she was talking to a person with a simple mind. "Actually I think you're the one who's mistaken here. You see I'm not here on business." 

Blue eyes turned frosty and cold like the Arctic Sea and the smile vanished. "If you're not here on business then what are you here for?" She demanded. It was clear from her tone of voice that she expected Rei to answer her question. 

Rei looked her squarely in the eyes and said calmly. "It's a personal matter that does not concern you."

The woman's eyes flashed with anger. Clearly she was not used to being denied anything. Taking a few steps closer so that she was standing only a few inches away from Rei she hissed out, "Now you listen here, you little tramp. You might be his current lover at the moment but don't think that it'll hold much power. He'll get rid of you soon enough once he tires of you and trust me he always does. I'm the only one who has ever been able to hold his heart, for whatever it has been worth. If you want to get as much as you can out of this situation, I suggest you leave right now and I might persuade Martin to keep you along for a while longer."

Rei stared at the woman with the beginning of irritation coiling like a snake in her stomach. Disgust didn't even start to describe what she was feeling. Mistaking Rei for her ex-hushand's lover was bad enough but to even offer her that kind of a suggestion. 

Baring her teeth and making no pretense of smiling Rei said, "Haven't anyone ever told you that projecting oneself in every woman you see, is bad for the health?"

Watching the woman's eyes widening in shock was satisfying and hearing her suck in her breath in outrage even more enjoyable. Years of training made her alert enough to catch the woman's striking hand. 

"You bitch. How _dare _you! Tracy, call the security! I want her out of this building this instance. Tracy!" One look over her shoulder showed however that the assistant was already gone. "Coward, I'll have her fired for this. As for you," She turned blazing blue eyes on Rei, "when I'm finished with you, you'll wish you've never been born. You have no idea whom you're dealing with."

"Nor do you." Rei told her calmly. The irritation she felt was quickly started to change into simmering anger at the woman's attitude. Bad manner was one thing but she had never tolerated anyone threatening her not even as a child. 

"All right what's going on here?" A new and awfully familiar voice suddenly said. The voice was dark and had a lilting quality that seemed to play at her nerves like a guitarist over strings. 

Rei looked up, violet eyes met lake blue eyes and it was debatable who looked more shocked. Standing in front of her was the very same driver that had nearly run her down on the street below. 

"You!" Both said at the same time. 

Martin's ex-wife, startled at the reaction, stopped with her futile tugging efforts to free herself and looked from the tall man behind her to the slight woman holding her captive. "Jay, you know her?" She asked.

Hearing the woman's voice, brought Jay back to his senses and he looked at the pair, his sharp eyes stopping at their interlocking hands. "Seems like it." When his eyes returned to meet hers, Rei felt the force of his gaze hit her like a physical blow and she body tingled with the warning of danger. Those blue eyes were not very welcoming and something told her that unlike the woman in front of her, this man was not someone to be trifled with. "I see that you've changed your mind."

Rei frowned. She didn't know what he meant but it didn't take a degree in psychology to figure out that it was nothing good for her. 

The man seemed to take her silence as a yes because his lips took on a grim line, "Well seems you have found me, though I don't know how you ended up in Martin's room. So why don't you release Tanya and come with me? We'll settle this somewhere else." 

Settle what? She wasn't about to go anywhere with him. Obviously he wasn't just a reckless driver but touched in the head as well. From the way he looked now she would be glad if she got out of wherever he intended to take her, alive. 

"Miss I'm not going to ask you twice. Let her go right now." The man told her silkily and took a step further in to the room. 

Something told her to run, but she stiffened her spine and planted her feet. Lifting her chin defiantly she said, "This has nothing to do with you. So leave us."

Jay stopped in his tracks a slightly startled look crossing his face at the quiet order from her. Amusement warred with annoyance within him. Did she even realize the precautious situation she was in? He didn't know how she managed to force herself all the way up here. He'll applaud her for her resourcefulness and boldness the second after he sacks the person responsible for letting her in. Unfortunately for her however she will find out soon enough that he is not an easy opponent to deal with. Actually if she was smart enough she should have taken up that stupid lawyer's offer at the street and had a better chance of gaining some money from it. This was his territory.

Rei watched the smile that surfaced on the blonde man's face and she was not the least of bit reassured. He looked like a predator that had just spotted a prey and decided for the kill. 

"Jay, don't just stand there. Call the security. I want the woman tossed out on the street. No better yet call the cops. I want her arrested for assault." Tanya demanded.

"Oh I don't think we need the guards for that." Jay told her wryly and glanced at Rei. 

Indignation flooded her at the look. She recognized it well enough having been at the receiving end of those often as she grew up because of her tiny stature. "Put a hand on me and you'll be singing soprano, Blondie." The man might be tall but carrying a black belt in karate gave her advantage of knowing of how to take down opponents twice her size. Though instinct told her she was going to need both hands to accomplish that with him. 

Rei pushed Tanya away from her and released her hold at the same time. She didn't use that much force but the woman still stumbled and would most probably have fallen if Jay hadn't reacted fast and caught hold of her. His quick movement gave Rei pause. There might be more behind that elegant façade after all.

"You'll be hearing from my lawyers. Make no mistake about that. I'll have you put into prison for this." Tanya was massaging her wrist but Rei knew for a fact that she didn't hold her tight enough to bruise her. 

Rei folded her arms in front of her and arched one dark brow. "Oh, really? Well do tell me how you're going to explain it especially when I have witness that says you were the one who charged into this room and started throwing insults around and not to mention attacking me? Hmm?"

"Tracy will tell no such things." 

"Oh but I do beg to differ she's not exactly going to be helping you out especially considering your warm personality and your high esteem of her qualifications." She was wearing a smile but her violet eyes were burning with an inner fire. If either Ami or Mako had been around, they would have recognized the look as the one Rei wore when she was turning from being annoyed to royally pissed off. It was a warning sign that one should not press her unless they wanted to be scorched by the inferno that was her temper. 

Rei watched the pair. Tanya wore a slightly hesitant look about her and swallowed visibly. Jay on the other hand was looking at her with gaze that she could not recognize. The intensity in them was however very unnerving. 

~ o ~

Tanya could feel her heart beating erratically. There was something about the girl's eyes. Her mouth turned dry. She waited for Jay to react but the annoying man was just standing there watching the girl with an unreadable expression as if he was seeing something he had never seen before. 

Finally loosing her patience, Tanya demanded. "This is ridiculous. Are you going to let a slip of a girl threaten you like that?"

Jay looked down at her, pale brows raised slightly. "Seems to me the threats are more directed at you than me." He informed her. 

Blue eyes a few shades darker than his, bulged in outrage. "Oh this is great. Just great!" Tanya threw up her hands in the air, "I cancel an important appointment at my hairdresser to see my idiot of an ex-husband and what do I get? I get attacked by his whore and snide remarks from the family's charity case."

Jay stilled and his eyes coated over with ice. "What did you just say?" He inquired softly in a dangerous tone. 

"If you keep calling me that, I'm going to clean your clock. And I won't care about your connection to Martin." Rei growled under breath and took a threatening step towards her. 

"Well that's the term referred to women such as you, isn't it? Or do you prefer the title escort lady?" Tanya shot back scathingly but took a step back at the same time. Her back came against a solid chest and warm hands came up on each side of her shoulder; the touch was as familiar to her as the voice. 

"Actually my dear, in this case, I think niece would be a better term to use." Martin Holden murmured softly. His breath blew slowly against her cheek, the touch as soft as a caress and Tanya felt the familiar stirring of desire awaken within her even as she quenched it with disgust. She looked over her shoulder at her ex-husband to see if he noticed anything but if he did he was certainly not giving any show of it now as his attention was turned towards the girl. He wore an indulgent smile on his face, the kind that he had always reserved for her and their daughter and that had always irritated her. So he had found another he was going to play father figure too? Then her breath caught as the words he had said registered in her head and she turned with a startled gaze towards oriental looking woman. Niece?!

"Hello Rei. Welcome to New York." Martin said and walked towards her. 

"Hello. And thank you." Rei replied, her pale cheeks were slightly heated. Tanya's eyes narrowed. She had to give it to her. The girl had some acting skill, being able to pull of the innocent slightly embarrassed look so well that Tanya would have believed her too if she hadn't been threatened by the very same person a minute earlier.

As Tanya watched, her disgust grew even more pronounced when Martin, instead of taking the hand Rei was offering, embraced her. He never did have it figured out the difference between public and private. Such an awful display of affection in front of outsiders was embarrassing. 

She cast a glance at Jay beside her. His face looked like carved in stone and her lips compressed. Unlike his sister who was as open as a book and completely carefree, Jay was as devious and ambitious as they came. She could almost imagine those wheels turning in his head plotting for his next move and how he was going to use this new turn of event to his advantage and gain more power in the family. After all he already got several allies including Tracy.

At the thought of her husband's assistant Tanya turned to look at the woman in question. She was standing discreetly outside in the hallway and tried very hard not to give off a smug face but Tanya knew better. The woman had run off to get her boss. Oh she'll deal with her later. 

Without a word Tanya went and closed the door in the woman's face, cutting her and the other curious onlookers off from more entertainment. No doubt they already had enough to gossip about during the afternoon breaks over coffee. Tanya would have loved to tell Jay to leave too but her powers, unfortunately, didn't extend that far.

Turning her attention back to her ex-husband and the girl in question, Tanya studied the girl quietly as the two of them talked. Long black hair, pale skin, oval face, high cheekbones and extraordinary violet eyes. Yes she should have recognized the girl. Aside from those eyes, the girl was a spitting image of her mother. Though Sakura never had her kind of foul temper. No, that temper or hers reminded Tanya of someone else. Some humor returned as she thought of how the old hag would react when she was faced off with someone as equally foul tempered as her. For the first time since she signed her divorce papers, Tanya regretted the fact that she wouldn't be able to be around the Holden's to watch those two square off. Something told her that this girl would not jump just because the old hag snapped her fingers. 

Tanya was still wearing a smile when she was introduced to Rei. The handshake was brief, telling her that the girl didn't hold her in any higher esteem than she did. As far as Tanya was concerned it didn't bother her at all. After all she was no longer a Holden and the chances of their paths crossing would be as good as non existence, especially since there won't even be anymore contact with her ex after today. 

Remembering her reason for being here, Tanya gave Rei a bright smile. "I'm sorry about the earlier misunderstanding. I was upset and I needed to talk to Martin. I still do. So I hope you won't take this the wrong way when I ask to have a moment alone with Martin? It won't take long and then the two of you can finish catching up."

The question was directed to Rei but it was at Martin she was looking at. Without a word, she give him a very pointed look, one that she was sure he would recognize even if they had been divorced for three years. 

Not disappointing her, Martin cleared his throat and looked apologetically at his niece. Heat was slowly creeping up his throat a clear sign of embarrassment on his part. "I'm sorry, my dear but would you mind excusing us for a while?" He put a hand on Tanya's elbow, clearly meaning to lead her out of the office. 

Refusing to be the one to leave, Tanya planted her feet, giving him the option of either stay or cause a scene; knowing full well that he loathed the latter. Either way the girl was going to pay for her behavior. 

She had however not counted on Jay who stepped smoothly forward. "Why don't I take Rei and show her around instead. That way the two of you can talk in private here?" He suggested to Martin.

Three startled gaze fell on the man but he seemed unfazed by it. "Miss Hino?" One hand behind his back and the other extended sideways, he gestured for her to precede him. 

Tanya watched the girl carefully, trying to see if she was impressed by the obvious display of charm but, after one glance at Martin, Rei walked out with a composed face. 

She let the smile on her face linger until the door had shut firmly behind the pair. Once she was sure they had moved far enough down the hallway not to overhear anything, the smile vanished from her face and she whirled around to face her ex-husband her blue eyes shooting lightning bolts. 

"You!" She hissed and took a threatening step closer.

Martin took one look at her and an apprehensive look crossed his face. "Now, Tanya." 

~ o ~

Rei followed Jay down the hallways paying little attention to her surroundings. The slight headache she had felt earlier was starting to build in force and she knew that if she didn't take an aspirin soon she was going to feel like someone was playing the Macarena with her head. 

Her eyes drifted sideways to the tall man beside her. He was no longer giving off the sense of danger like he had before, actually ever since Martin revealed her identity he seemed to have turned hundred and eighty degrees in his behavior towards her. It puzzled her a great deal since she wasn't even sure what had brought on the antagonism to begin with. Considering that it had been mainly his fault with the near accident before, she had a lot more right to be angry than him. One thing was definite however, he made her uncomfortable and she had no more liking in staying with him than she had with Tanya. 

Rei was just coming up with a way to excuse herself when a woman in bright peach suit and dark rimmed glasses came hurriedly down the hallway towards them. Rei got the impression that the woman would have run if it weren't for the skyscrapers she wore. As it was she was moving rather strangely. 

"Mr. Arlington. Oh I'm so glad I found you." The woman breathed a sigh of relief and waved a portable phone in her hand. "There's an emergency at the building site on Hampton. Roderic needs to talk to you right away."

His face didn't change but Rei could feel the strong emotional waves that surged through him, she was startled at the potency and the fact that she was able to even feel it. Normally she wasn't that sensitive towards others emotional feelings, but today her abilities seemed to be heightened. Even back in Martin's office she had felt the tension in the room like bow strings drawn tight enough to break. 

Jay took the phone from the woman and started firing off fluently in a foreign language. All Rei was able to decipher was that it was some kind of Latin language either Spanish or something close enough to it. She and the woman waited patiently as the conversation continued for a while. The throbbing in her head increased and sensing the other woman casting her curious glances didn't help to improve her temper. 

"Jess. Would you please take Miss Hino here down to my office and bring some refreshment?" Jay said suddenly, startling the woman enough to make her jump. He waited long enough for her to nod her head, and then resumed his conversation with the man on the other line. 

Rei watched his broad back disappear down the hallway and around the corner with flushed face. She closed her open mouth with an audible click. "You could have at least asked me for my opinion." She muttered under her breath.

"I'm sorry, miss. Did you say something?" The woman, Jess, inquired.

Plastering a smile on her and hoping that she wasn't looking like she was giving off a grimace, Rei said. "Yes I was wondering if you have a piece of paper and pencil that I can borrow?" 

The woman smiled hesitantly, letting Rei believe that it was indeed a grimace she gave off, and went in to the nearest office to fetch the things. 

"Could you please give this to Mr. Martin Holden once he finishes his meeting?" Rei asked and handed the woman back the piece of paper where she had scribbled down a note to Martin telling him to contact her about the further arrangements for the funeral along with the name of the hotel and the room she was staying in.

"Yes of course. But what about Mr. Arlington? Should I give him any message?" It was clear from her tone that she found the whole thing very puzzling. 

"Just tell him I left and there's no need to baby-sit me anymore." Rei told Jess over her shoulder and headed for the elevators. 

She knew she was being rude, but she was past caring. All she could focus on at the moment was putting one foot ahead of the other. Fortunately for her the elevator arrived rather soon and it was completely empty. The moment the sliding doors slid shut, Rei leaned heavily against the wall and rubbed at her temples trying to relieve the tension there. She could do nothing about the tension she was feeling in her chest, however.

Her eyes stung but she didn't even know whatever for. Certainly not for the rudeness of Martin's ex. As for those curious looks she had received as she walked down the hallways well she could stand those too. After all she had grown up with people staring at her even as a child, being half Japanese and half American and looking both. She was certainly not upset about being pushed around like a ball from one end to another. There was no reason for her to feel like she was in the way for everyone. It wasn't her idea to come here, but as far aas invitation went she had never felt more like an intruder. 

When she came out to the trafficked street below, Rei felt lost. Unlike earlier she didn't feel the excitement anymore. The mass of people walking up and down the street combined with the sound of traffic and strange looking surrounding was turning claustrophobic. Unable to cope with the feeling she took the cab back to the hotel. 

The moment she had thrown off her shoes and taken two aspirins, Rei grabbed the phone and started punching in the sets of numbers that she knew by heart.

A few signals went and then a sleepy voice mumbled something that sounded vaguely like hello in Japanese. 

"Ami." Hearing the familiar voice of her oldest friend, Rei felt the tension in her chest starting to loosen up. 

* * *

AN: Well here's the chapter a bit later than I anticipated but like I said I'm without a beta at the moment and correcting my own grammar is not easy. ;) Hope you guys still enjoyed the read. The Holden's are quite a dysfunctional family huh? And to think there's more to come once the funeral comes along. 

Anyways thank you all so much for the lovely reviews. As you can see I love New York though I have only been there on brief visits the city made a real impact on me. If there are some inaccuratecy concerning the place please do point them out to me. 

Oh and for those of you wondering "na zdorovje" means cheers in Russian. 

More Rei and Jay coming up in a week or so. 

Cya! 


	5. A diary

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and the characters in them don't belong to me. 

**Chapter 5: A diary **

By Lady Fenix 

"I'm so glad to finally meet you, my dear." Rhonda Ellsmere, said to Rei as she settled down on one of the two chairs in the tiny studio apartment in Lower East side. 

"Me too." Rei told her mother's best friend and smiled. 

Despite the fact that this was probably the first time in nearly twenty years that they meet, Rei didn't feel the least of bit awkward in the older woman's presence. The two of them had exchanged letters ever since Rei's mother died when she was seven years old and Rhonda wrote to Rei to express her sorrow and offer moral support. While the letters had not been frequent, Rei was at least sure of one thing and that was the genuine fondness the woman held for her.

However, she had been caught momentarily by surprise when the front door was opened and she had come face to face with her. Since Rhonda was the same age as Sakura, Rei knew she should only be in her mid forties. The woman that greeted her had looked closer to seventy with her crown of bushy gray hair and strong facial lines; lines that seemed to be the result from harsh dealings rather than age. 

"So how do you find the Big Apple?" Rhonda asked and set down the coffee pot with the water on the table without breaking eye contact with Rei. She moved with an easy grace that was quite startling considering her large frame, and a confidence that spoke of a good knowledge of where everything laid in the room despite the jumbled mess. 

"It's different. Vibrant, impatient and …" Rei gestured helplessly with one hand which had the other woman chuckling.

"Yeah I know what you mean. Had the same effect on me too when I first arrived. It's the feeling; it's powerful and indescribable at the same time. The crowd shouldn't be a problem for you though, right? From what I remember Sakura telling me, Tokyo is swarming with as much people if not more."

Rei smiled. "Somewhat." She remembered her reaction as she entered the underground this morning and seeing the stations and city trains. They had certainly differed from the pristine clean and gleaming subways in Tokyo. She had been kind of surprised that some of the trains were actually able to move considering how old and run down they looked. 

"Its interesting seeing so many people from different nationalities all mixed up one place. It's feels strange to be one of the minorities. Well that is until I walked through China Town." Rei added and laughed. She had taken the wrong train and ended up in Canal Street instead of East Broadway and thus had to walk through half of China town to reach the apartment which was situated close to eastern periphery of the area. 

"Yes, there's quite a lot of Chinese here. And you certainly could be mistaken for one of them, wearing those shades." Rhonda nodded towards the dark tinted glasses that were currently perched on top of Rei's head. 

Rei could attest to that, having been called after by several vendors eager to sell their merchandise to her. Not that she understood what they said but it was not hard to miss their meaning. In a way she had quite enjoyed herself, smiling and shaking her head at them before continuing her journey. She liked the place; if possible it was even more hectic than midtown where she was staying. The people here were dressed more normally – definitely no lady in purple fur walking her poodle. The characters on the signs were familiar enough that she could nearly feel at home. And the smell of the delicious food that streamed out from the many shops and restaurants that completely made her mouth water. 

When Rei told Rhonda that, the sturdy woman clucked her tongue at her obvious refreshing fascination of something that she herself felt was rather common. "Just make sure that you don't get too distracted by the sight that you loose awareness of your surroundings. There are a lot of riff raffs running around these areas too. A pretty girl who looks like she doesn't belong here can easily get into trouble. And I don't just mean getting your purse snatched." Rhonda handed Rei one of the two large cups she had poured. The cup was so large that even holding it both of her hands Rei wasn't able to let her fingertips touch on either side.

Since the admonishment was so much like what a mother would be telling her daughter and she could easily see the concern in the woman's dark eyes, Rei couldn't find it in her heart to become angry. "Don't worry about me. I might look small and harmless but grandfather has taught me marshal arts so I'm capable of defending myself from unwanted attentions."

"Even those karate moves won't save you from a bullet if you piss off the wrong person and believe me most of those kids out there belonging to gangs carries." 

"Well it's no different from any other place in the world." Rei told her in a patient tone and tried hard to keep the laughter from showing. From the way she spoke, one would think that New York was the only place with crimes.

Rhonda, seeming to understand where she was coming from, shook her head. "Forgive me, I just can't help myself. My daughter Zelda keeps telling me that I can't go on an hour without nagging at somebody about taking precautions. It's just that ever since Zeke died….." Her voice trailed off.

There was a long moment of silence. Rei didn't know what to say. She knew Zeke was Rhonda's son and that he had passed away a few years back though she was never told the reason behind it. From what had been said here today it was not hard for her to figure out that it must have been violent.

"Anyways let's talk about something else. How are you handling the time difference?" Rhonda asked and broke the awkward silence. "It dawned on me after I hung up that maybe I shouldn't have asked you to come out so early. You must still be feeling jetlagged."

"No I'm fine." Rei refrained from saying that yesterday she had been so exhausted that she had completely broken down over the phone with her friend. At least that was, according to Ami, the reason she had felt so down. The combination of a long trip, the time difference, being nearly killed and having an ugly confrontation with a hag, well hag was Rei's reference of Tanya not Ami's, anybody would feel down and homesick. And like always Ami was right, after a good night sleep Rei had indeed woken up this morning feeling much better. 

Rhonda smiled. "Resilient. Just like your ma." Then as if realizing just what she said her face turned remorseful. "I'm so sorry. This was supposed to be a happy occasion and here I go bringing up your ma like that and no doubt waking up a lot of sad memories for you." 

"No it's all right. Actually I'm glad that you brought her up." She took a sip of the coffee and just as she suspected the thing was brutally strong. Hoping that she wasn't to develop a serious case of burned stomach, Rei continued. "Grandfather doesn't talk that much about her and even if he does it's mostly about how she was as a child. It's nice to talk to someone who knew her from another period of time."

Rhonda nodded her head as if she had expected something like that. "I doubt he ever had the chance to get to know the Sakura that came back before her untimely death."

It was the bitterness in her tone that prompted Rei to ask softly. "Tell me about her. Tell me about my mother."

"Sakura?" Rhonda leaned back against the chair. It gave off a soft creaking sound but held under her weight. There was a far away look in her eyes as if she was thinking back to those days and visualizing them. "She was a sweet girl, loyal, naïve and very, very shy." Her face pulled back into a wistful smile as if remembering something fondly. The creases on her face increased making the skin resemble old leather. 

"When I first met her, we were taking arts classes together and there was a special group assignment. She barely spoke two words to me. She was beautiful and very popular with her well mannered ways and while I on the other hand was loud and abrasive. I thought she was stuck up and didn't want to associate with someone like me. But as it turned out later on as we gradually became to know each other and Sakura won over her initial shyness, the two of us hit off pretty well and we became friends. I didn't even hesitate to offer her to live in my apartment when her scholarship ended and she couldn't afford to stay at the dorm and pay for her tuition. I have to say, there had been times I have regretted that offer, since staying in the city had meant her path had eventually crossed with _his"_

There was no mistaking the resentment in her tone. Leaning closer her violet eyes intent on the older lady's, Rei asked tentatively. "How did they meet? My parents, that is?" She hadn't meant to ask but something was prompting her.

Rhonda was silent and for a moment there Rei feared she was not going to answer her and then woman started talking. "Sakura was working extra at the Japanese bookstore close to the school to help pay for the tuition and your father was there to look up a reference book for a paper he was writing. It had something to do with the Marshal aid that the US sent to Japan right after the WWII. Sakura turned out to be a better reference since he wanted to write about the Japanese point of view and his grasp of the language was spotty at the best. Any blind fool could see that it he wasn't as much interested in the papers as he was in her."

"And my mother?" 

"Sakura?" Rhonda gave a decisive laughter. "She was smitten the moment he spoke to her and who could blame her? The man was handsome, charming, educated and rich as Midas. It was like stepping into a Cinderella story. He completely swept her off her feet. Flowers by dozen arrived everyday at work and to our apartment until the place looked more like a flower shop than a living quarter. He took her to plays, fancy restaurants and even traveled to far off places. The two of them were inseparable and so in love it became revolting to be anywhere near them. I wasn't surprised when they announced their engagement two months later."

Rei caught something in the tone of her voice. "You were against it?"

"She was still too young and too inexperienced to jump into a marriage, especially with someone like your father. He had a complete different background and came from a complete different world, a world that she was going to have to live in. But she was in love." Rhonda continued though she seemed to be talking more to herself than to Rei. "She was so in love then and so sure love would sort everything out for them. I didn't have the heart to add more pressure to her, she was getting enough of that from Mr. Hino and her friends back home. I couldn't trample all over her happiness as well. Especially seeing how devastated she was after each conversation with them. She wanted so much to have someone that was happy for her and I wanted to be her friend, to give her the support a friend is supposed to give. And instead …." Her voice trailed off. 

Watching those chocolate brown eyes fill with remorse and sadness, Rei felt a lump build in her throat. She never knew that Rhonda had felt responsible for Sakura's fate. Because she had gone through nearly the same thing when Mako met Nathan, Rei could understand the hardship Rhonda had been through. It was never easy being a true friend. Were you supposed to make yourself feel better by speaking your mind and risk hurting the friend's feelings or be supportive and let her make her own decision and live her own life, despite the fact that you felt it was wrong? Who could decide what was right and wrong?

In Mako and Nathan's case, Rei had been adamantly against the relationship, fearing that Nathan would end up hurting Mako the way her mother had been hurt by her father. She hadn't wanted to give them her support because she felt Mako was making the biggest mistake of her life but then Ami had told her that being a friend didn't mean taking over that person's life and telling them how to live it. She could voice her opinion but in the end the life was Mako's and the road hers to walk. The only thing they could do as her friends is to make things easier for her and just be there for her, for better or for worse. Grudgingly she had to give in and as it turned out Rei was the one who had been wrong about Nathan. In the ten years she had known Mako, Rei had never seen her friend happier than from the day she married Nathan.

But in Rhonda's case Rei knew for a fact that she did nothing wrong. "You made the right choice. I don't think that mama would have changed her mind even if you had spoken up. But what you managed to achieve instead by keeping your own counsel and making things easier for her, is to make her happy. Something that I know she appreciated." 

Hearing that last sentence Rhonda pinned Rei's eyes. "She told you about it?"

Rei nodded her head, violet pools shadowing with the memories. "It was during her last days. She was delirious from the pain and didn't know the past from the present. She was recalling her wedding day, the second most wonderful day in her life, next to the day of my birth and how you were part of doing that. The help you gave her, the preparation you made. Especially your gifts: The earrings, the perfume, your grandmother's necklace, and the bouquet."

"Something old and something new. Something borrowed and something blue." Rhonda murmured softly and laughed but it held a tinge of irony in it. "Took me a while to find the right combination. They were supposed to be her good luck charms."

"The important thing was the meaning behind the gesture and not the consequence." Rei told her firmly, not wanting her to blame herself anymore for something that she clearly couldn't be faulted for.

Rhonda looked at her and the smile she bestowed her was as a gentle as the pat she gave on the hand that was resting on the table. "You are a nice girl. You're mother would have been proud of you."

Because those words touched her deeply, the only words Rei could utter were simply. "Thank you."

"No," Rhonda shook her head softly making the crown of gray hair swing back and forth, "it is _I_ that should say thank you. Thank you for putting up with an old lady and her memories. I'm sure you could have done a lot more exciting things with your time than spending it here in this dingy rundown place." She threw an embarrassed glance at the limited space around them.

Having not had a chance to really take a good look around the apartment since she entered it, Rei let her gaze sweep over the approximately three hundred square feet of area. A small bed was situated by the wall next to the front door, Rhonda's grandson, Elias was currently sleeping there blissfully with a silly grin on his cherubic face. A wooden wardrobe filled with clothes, baby things and toys separated the sleeping area from the rest of the studio. A faded yellow couch covered with a colorful quilt came next, facing a small sized TV and the bathroom. Whatever space was left was used for the eating area which included a counter, a stove and a fridge by the only wall that had windows, and a square table with a pair of mismatched chairs. Pots, pans, dried flowers hung from the walls in the kitchen area, and photographs and colored drawings clearly made by a child covered the rest of the place. A considerably large pile containing newspaper, was leaning against the side of the couch, threatening to spill over and cover the miniature sized fire truck with missing headlight on the floor. It might be littered with things, but Rei could sense that everything there was there for a purpose; the love and care that had been put into everything in this place made one feel comfortable and welcomed.

"I couldn't think of a better way to spend my time here than getting to know my mother's best friend. Besides it's not the size that matters, it's what inside it. You have made this place into a home that any woman would be proud to call her own." Rei told her truthfully.

"Oh," Rhonda's voice hitched. Emotions welled up inside her, filling her chest and warmth spreading her throughout her body. "Now you've done it. I swore I wouldn't be too emotional today." Her eyes filled and she leaned over to grab a few tissues from the Kleenex box to dab at them. Part of her had been a bit worried about what the girl would think about her place, knowing her privileged background. She wanted so much to give a good impression to daughter of her best friend. The difference in social status never bothered Sakura after her marriage into the Holden's, but Rhonda knew that Martin and his family had given her a lot of grief about it at home. Keeping a correspondence through letters was one thing, but now that she was here and had seen the money and the power she was connected to, Rhonda had feared Rei might have been influenced by that. She was glad to see the girl had taken up a lot more of her mother than her father.

"Oh before I forget, I got something for you." Rhonda rose from her chair and hurriedly walked over to the closet next to the bathroom with a speed and grace that belied her appearance. 

"You shouldn't have gotten me anything." Rei told her embarrassedly as she watched the woman rummage through the mountain of clothes inside. 

"It's nothing like that. Ah here they are." She pulled out a small worn shopping bag with Laura Ashley written on the outside. "Actually these are yours to begin with. I've always meant to mail them to you but somehow I never got the chance to. Since you're here now and especially considering your questions earlier I think you would like it."

Mystified Rei took the bag she offered her and peeked inside. There were two things in them: one which looked like a small book and the other a large box. Rei pulled out the box as Rhonda cleared the table for her to set it down. She cast the woman an inquiring look and getting a nod of encouragement, Rei slowly opened the box. Inside was a photo album in cream velvet with the faces of her mother and father smiling back at her. Sakura was wearing a wedding dress. 

"It's her wedding album. She left them here on her last day in New York." Rhonda explained to her. 

Rei traced a hand slowly over her mother's face, the plastic film soft and cool underneath her touch. Young, she looked so young there. Her eyes moved over her father's. Actually they both looked young. Vulnerable somehow. There were no pain shadowing her mother's dark eyes and no cynical coldness in her father's. Rei settled the lid back on the box and took out the book bound in red velvet. 

"That's her diary." Rhonda told her gently. "She used to write them whenever something special happened to her."

Emotions churned inside her, threatening to overwhelm her. "Thank you." Rei told her softly. She tore her gaze away from the diary to look into the woman's eyes. The emotions churning in her violet depths were easily distinguished. "Thank you for keeping them safe all these years."

Rhonda shrugged, feeling slightly embarrassed by the obvious gratitude. "They're yours by right. I've always figured Sakura left them at my place because she wanted me to keep them safe for you. Probably figured she would get too emotional and burn them up if she kept them. Well the photo album at least. As for the diary I think given your earlier questions what better way for you to get to know your mother?" After a moment of hesitation she added. "Or your father for that matter?" 

Something flickered in Rei's eyes and seeing it made her recall the reason the girl was in town to begin with. Out of real concern for Rei rather than any warm feelings towards her sire, Rhonda asked. "How are you holding up with the whole thing, by the way?"

Rei didn't pretend she didn't know what she was talking about. Martin had asked her the same question last night when he came by the hotel to take her out for dinner and she gave Rhonda the same answer she had given him. 

Unlike the man who had accepted it and moved on to other subject, Rhonda snorted. 

"The man ignored you for most of your life. Then fell of the sky, plunged into the sea one stormy day and croaked. But all in all he was the man who sired you. I don't think alright under the circumstances, sums it up. You'll feel the loss and the pain and swirling in all of that a lot of anger too or I'll eat my slipper for breakfast."

Rei stared at the woman, her full lips parted in the act of denying it but then seeing the challenge in those warrior-like eyes, she let out a reluctant small laugh. "You're good. I thought only Ami and Mako could read me that well."

Rhonda snorted. "I was planning on taking a degree in psychology before I hitched myself to a looser and got knocked up it the same process and had to burn those bridges. But there's still some of that in here." She tapped at her temple. 

And no doubt she would probably have made a fine shrink, Rei thought, if life hadn't dealt her such hard blows one after another. Here was another woman who had had thought she had met her soulmate, given him all her love and abandoning her promising future only to have him completely ruin her life. 

Mako might say what she wants, but in Rei's opinion love was just a weak thing that made reason fly out the window and the brain turn mush and definitely, nothing for Rei. 

~ o ~ 

"So tell me about the girl. Rumors had it she nearly went into a meltdown with Tanya." Darien inquired with one arched black brow as he sat down on one of the two chairs opposite Jay. Amusement could be seen in the wry quirk of his almost smile as he stretched out his long legs in front of him and rested his feet comfortably on the shining surface of the mahogany desk.

The office in London was quiet given the late hours most had already headed home. Jay had flown over to go through some last minute details before the business meeting with the Minister of Culture in the morning. As the head of Marketing, it was Darien's job to brief him so he would be prepared for tomorrow, but he was at the moment more interested in other things than work. 

Jay gave him a sore look. "Is that what you do on your time? Listen to gossip like a housewife?"

Not the least of bit phased by his friend's obvious dark mood, Darien dusted away a speck of dust on his impeccable gray suit. "Hard to miss it considering it seems to be the main topic everywhere. News of the collision spread like a forest fire in the middle of summer, through the company. Rich got the mail forwarded to him two hours after it happened and from the long list of addresses it had already passed through all the North American branches and most of Europe before reaching us here."

"If Rich spend as much time writing his speeches as he does reading those damn mails of his, our sales would probably increase twenty percent." Jay muttered sourly. 

"Careful there, mate. My wedding is coming up and Sere will have a fit if I put in more work than what I already do now." 

At the mentioning of Darien's fiancée and soon to be wife, Jay felt the familiar smile pull at him but he kept a firm control over his facial muscles. He was not through scorching his friend yet. "I don't see you doing a lot of that when you dumped me the other night with the Russians." He pointed out.

It was due to twenty years of friendship that Darien didn't even have the grace to look guilty. "You handled that one pretty well. Besides didn't I come by to pick you up later and haul your ass back to your place?"

"You fucking dropped me at the door and left." 

Darien made a tsking sound. "Demands and more demands. You are never satisfied, are you?. I could have left you at the bar and let you wake up next to Ivan. I'm sure he would have loved the cuddling and the spooning."

Jay choked. "You didn't!" His memories were still blotchy of the night and horrified emotions slashed at him like knifes. 

Face completely grave, Darien nodded his head. "Cute picture you made too. Him all big and strong next to your scrawny built with his tree trunk of an arm draped over you like that. Heck if you grew your hair long, you could probably be –"

"Dare, in five seconds, I'm going to come over there and kill you with this blunt instrument." Jay growled and waved the strange looking tool in his hand; one that Darien recognized as one the many gadgets he used when he was drawing sketches.

Deep friendship also gave him intimate knowledge of when to retreat from a battle. "Ok, ok. So it hadn't gone that far but it was close. Another half an hour or so, who knows?" He gave a devilish smile that had his friend scowling. 

"Since I showed a great amount of loyalty and friendship there, care to give me some inside details? I hear you got a little one on one with her too." 

"Keep pushing your luck and I'll work your ass so hard you'll be glad to be able to attend the wedding much less the bachelor party."

Dark brow's arched at the innuendo. In response he got the object thrown at him. "Ouch." He massaged his chest where it had hit him. So much for blunt object.

"Obviously the lack of sex life has your mind going on overdrive. I for once can't wait 'til next month when Sere finally hauls your ass to the altar." 

"Careful there mate. Or I'll have to take you down to the gym and whoop your ass." Darien warned sapphire eyes turning from merry to serious within a second. Friendship was one thing but his sex life was at the moment a very sensitive topic, especially since Sere had decided to make it traditional by requesting no sex before the wedding. 

Now that the table was turned, Jay gave him an arrogant sneer. "From what I recall the last time I was the one who whooped your ass. Gave you a rather impressive blue eye too." Not that he had gotten scratch free himself, both Serena and Mina had doubled teamed on him and busted his chop and all they did was use their voices, he recalled.

"You were just lucky. My attention was diverted at that time or you would never have managed to get in that hit." Darien grumbled. 

It was true to a certain degree, Serena had walked in to their training at that time and Jay had used the opportunity to his advantage and delivered the finishing blow that made him the winner. A little low of him but hell, he got to brag about it for a long while afterwards. Plus it always put that dark scowl on Darien's face that made him feel so much better. 

Figured he owed him a little, Jay decided to be amiable. "She had Tanya quivering from head to toe."

Blue eyes lighting up with interest, Darien dropped his feet to the floor and leaned forward to rest his elbow on his table. "Oh really? What did she do?" 

Tanya had never been among either of their favorite persons. As children the redheaded woman had treated Jay as the poor relative and Darien as the bad element. Neither was to be associated with for fear of contamination. 

"She threatened to bust her chop."

Darien chuckled evilly. "I think I'm starting to like this girl." 

"She's different that's for sure." Jay agreed recalling the scenes from yesterday and how she had both surprised and impressed him by facing him and Tanya temper for temper. The girl had practically crackled with fire. "What?" He asked, catching the strange look his friend was giving him.

"Uhuh. You tell me. What's with that look?"

"What look?"

"That look that you always get when something strikes your interest. Come on, man, I've seen that look often enough. You used to wear that look in high school whenever you went sniffing after a girl's skirt or in these days when something strikes your interest."

"She's hardly my type." Jay told him in a slightly affronted tone. Sure she had been beautiful in a strange exotic way and while he could enjoy that, there was no way she would attract him. Not with that temperament of hers. He was not a masochist, who enjoyed being raked up one side and down the other by that razor sharp tongue of hers.

"Oh yeah, " Darien snorted. "I forgot you like the sleeked, worldly, pampered types with more hair than brain." 

"I don't date women like that." Jay grumbled under his breath. From the way Darien described him, one would think he was just a shallow ass. 

Darien grinned and shrugged. "Could have fooled me with Sophia."

"That was the exception." Annoyance was cutting into irritation. So his last choice of a mistress had been a bit wrong. How was he to know that the woman really was as empty and shallow as the character she played on the movie set? He had thought she had talents to pull it off so realistically. He hadn't figured it wasn't talent as much as her just being herself. "Hey, Tory was smart." He pointed out, his blue eyes lighting up like a boy who had found a candy.

"Yeah she was smart alright. The piranha kind of smart. No, she would fall under the pampered, sleek type." 

Jay named a few more names and Darien easily filed them into each category in the end feeling more affronted and slightly panicked, Jay said. "Hey what's with the whole dissing the women I date all of a sudden? From what I recall you used to go out with women just like that before Serena came along. Actually they were worse. Remember Gianna? Or Carol?" Those two had been not only temperamental but down right violent as well when Darien had broken off with them. Gianna, especially with her Italian temper, even managed to scratch her nails down his face before he was able to contain her.

"That was then, my friend. This is now. I'm a reformed man." From the look he got thrown at him from his friend, it was obvious Jay didn't agree. It didn't bother him as long as Serena trusted him. "But seriously what's she like?"

Instead of answering though, he was thrown a question in response. "What's with the sudden interest?" Jay demanded and gave his friend a studying look. Ever since Serena had entered his life, it wasn't like Darien to show that much interest in a woman unless it was of professional need. 

"No reason except for curiosity I suppose." He pulled out a cigarette from the inner pocket of his jacket and lit it. Leaning back against the leather chair, his long legs stretched out in front of him, Darien gave an indifferent shrug with one shoulder. "Maybe it's a fault of mine but I find myself intrigued and wanting to know more about the girl whose existence most people around here have tried to ignore for the past sixteen years. The weakness of the human specimen I suppose. The more people try to hide things the more curious one get." 

Because he had been thinking and wondering about the woman too in the past day, Jay reluctantly said. "I didn't get the chance to talk to her much except for the name calling and threats to get a load of her character."

"Does she resemble Marcus?" Darien asked casually and blew out a smoky haze that filled the room with the scent of tobacco. 

Jay frowned and absently played with a golden pencil, rolling it between his fingers. "A mixture of both I would say. The eye color is his but the exotic slant in them are certainly oriental. Bold I would say, doesn't back down from a battle easily much like her father when it came to politics. She doesn't have his tact though." He recalled the way she spoke to him and to Tanya. She reminded him of a person who usually said her mind before thinking it through. In Marcus' case having a trait like that would have not lasted him long with his political career. "As for the rest," He shrugged "you'll get to find out when you see her at the funeral. You're coming right?" Jay threw Darien a speculative look.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Darien said a bit dryly. At the look Jay gave him, he added. "So funerals and dead people are not my things, but I will be there for Sere's sake. And Madame's." He added the last as an afterthought. 

No matter what, the old lady always had that impact on the people around her. She might be strict and aloof and not to mention a bit harsh in her methods, but somehow she still inspired loyalty in people even to those that in many people eyes have been treated unfairly by her, people like Jay's grandfather and Serena. 

Because he always felt uncomfortable whenever the subject of death and funeral came up, Darien said. "Now going back to the subject of Marcus' daughter. Since we've established that she isn't your type, then I suppose she falls under the other category." Leaning closer and lowering his voice, Darien said. "You figure she can be of use to you regarding your plans?" 

Jay met his eyes steadily, the blue orbs turning cool and detached as did his voice when he said, "We'll know in two days won't we when George reads the will?"

~ o ~ 

Back in her hotel room, unaware that on the other side of the planet, two men were in deep discussion over her, Rei settled down comfortably on the sofa by the window with her mother's diary perched on her lap. Her heart was beating a bit rapidly as she stared down at the velvet bound covers. Inside she knew were her mother's thoughts, her memories and her past. 

Should she open it? A small part of her felt guilt at reading the content. A diary was after all a very private thing. But overriding that emotion was an overwhelming sense of curiosity, a need of knowing just what kind of woman her mother had been. And, she admitted, finding out what had happened between her parents. What could make a woman who obviously was still very much in love leave the husband? What could have gone so wrong that he would refuse to even see her at her deathbed? It was an act that had infuriated Rei enough that she had simply refused to live with him, not that he had objected much either. 

So taking a deep breath and steadying herself mentally, Rei reached out to untie the small ribbon that kept the book closed. Her hand she noticed was unsteady. She flipped the cover open and saw the graceful lines of her mother's handwriting over the slightly faded pages and began to read. 

_August 20th 1976. New York._

_Today is my first day in New York. It feels like a new beginning, The start of a new life. Somehow it makes sense to begin keeping my own diary as well. I want to remember my time here forever. In case I get so old that my memories starts slipping I want to be able to read back to this time and remember the adventure I had here and the feelings I experienced, especially the feelings. ._

_I'm so excited and slightly frightened too. The bubbles in my stomach just keep on rising up and down and I'm not even sure which of the emotion is causing it. Either way it doesn't matte because I'm here! I'm finally here! After so many years of waiting, of dreaming, of longing I've finally managed to work hard enough to acquire a scholarship to take me here. Educational purpose with the tuition and living paid, even papa can't have anything to say about it this time._

_I know he means well but sometimes he can be so overprotective of me. I feel like I'm slowly suffocating under his well wishes. But I can't tell him that, not without hurting his feelings. I just hope that after this year has passed he will start regarding me as the adult that I am. After all I'll have survived a year in "big bad New York" as he calls it. _

_Oh I can't wait to explore this place. It is just as I had imagined it would be: the buildings, the people, and the excitement in the air. I feel so free and so happy. This is going to be so great I have a great feeling about my year here in the States. It's going to be one of the best years of my life. And maybe I'll finally figure out what it is that draws me so much to this place...._

* * *

AN: Sorry about dragging it out, I know most of you would like to read more of Rei and Jay interacting but Sakura's and Marcus' past play a large role in this story and I needed to lay some groundwork here. 

I do hope you enjoyed Jay's and Darien's scene though. Some of you might have noticed that Jay seems a bit more colder and less funloving the way he's usually portrayed and Darien a bit more "perky". All I can say is I'm trying to stick to the description given by Naoko about Jadeite: "_typical beautiful person. A ruthless, serious type."_ Don't worry though, to those he loves, Jay has a funloving side too. I guess the question is, whether or not Rei will bring out those traits in him too. ;) As for Darien, I'm going to plead patience again. ^-^ I'm just starting to explore his character. 

Next chapter might take a little longer to come out. I'm going to be a bit busy the coming week. As a teaser I can say more dysfunctional members is going to turn up as Rei will finally get to meet the rest of the Holden clan including her infamous grandmother. So will spark fly? ^-^

A special thanks to K.Wyse for all her help and for putting up with my ramblings. 

To all those who have reviewed and given such wonderful comments and encouragement thank you so much. And here are some comments to some of the questions you left:

**Like Cats**: The reason for Jay's anger towards with Rei will be explained soon. Hopefully in the next chapter.

**Kayla **and **MaLee**: Thank you both for reviewing every time. It truly means a lot.

**Strife**: Yes Jay was pissed and it did cloud his judgment somewhat but I hope I managed to answer your question with this chapter regarding Jay's impression of Rei. 

**Ice: **Hope you have a wonderful time in N.Y and get loads of inspiration. I want to see more chapters of _Soulmates_ coming up soon.

**Princess Ren:** Good hunch. Not completely on target but close enough. If I say more I'm going to be revealing too much. ^-^

**Miyaka****:** As you can see Rei's defiance and spirit caught Jay's eyes too. 

**Lady Mischief:** Let's just say that Jay's got enough confidence for a whole fleet. He going to need it since it won't be the first time Rei brushes him off. 

// Fenix


	6. A welcoming committee

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and the characters in them don't belong to me. All other characters and names are a figment of my imagination and any resemblance they might have to real life people or companies are purely coincidental. 

**

Chapter 6: A welcoming committee 

**

By Lady Fenix 

__

March 3rd 1977 Greenwich

I knew from the very day I met Marcus that he came from a far more privileged background than mine. It was not just the way he dressed and spoke but in his manners as well. I have to confess though, I never truly realized just how well off his family was until he took me to meet them for the first time and we came upon the spectacular iron wrought gates with the tipped golden leaves that signaled the beginning of the Holden estate. 

As Marcus, drove us down the gracefully curved driveway with the green lawns, flowering trees and perfectly groomed hedges, I felt like we were entering a magic kingdom and Marcus, my prince, was taking me towards his castle…..

Rei stepped out of the elegant silver Mercedes to the entrance courtyard of Holden's estate in Greenwich, Connecticut. She looked up at the three story stone and stucco house and found herself disagreeing with her mother. In her opinion the building didn't resemble a castle and aside from the fountain in the middle of the courtyard and broad pale stone steps bracketed by cut-leaf Japanese maples that led to the wide entrance doors, she did not sense anything magical about it. It was indeed large however. Even though the French windows indicated only three stories, the height was enough to resemble that of a four story building with the wide tower-like dark tiled roofs. She supposed the magnitude of the place could have been impressive to someone like her mother. 

Having stayed up most of last night reading her mother's diary, Rei thought she was getting a pretty good idea of just what kind of woman her mother had been. The diary had certainly contained enough description of both Sakura's past and present to give Rei food for thought during the four hour drive from midtown Manhattan to the outer edges of Greenwich. Martin had been too busy going through his papers to be much of a conversationalist and while the driver, Emmett, had cast several discreet looks towards her, he had been as silent as stone the whole way. This has given Rei plenty of time to think about her mother, her father and even her grandfather.

It seemed Sakura had led a very sheltered life as she grew up. Rei's grandfather didn't seem to have allowed her much freedom outside of the Cherry Hill temple. Having lost his wife at childbirth and forced to raise his daughter alone, he became too protective of the girl. It led her wanting to escape and to test her wings in the excitement of a large city like New York, the very moment she came of age.

Rei couldn't help but wonder if her grandfather had understood his mistake and was therefore more lenient when it came to Rei's upbringing. The description her mother had given of the strict father certainly couldn't be applied to the old man that Rei had grown up with. Most of the time in their relationship, she had felt more as if she was the adult and he the child. How many times had she told him to stop flirting with her friends when they came over to study with her? And how many times had she had to prevent him from carrying out his harebrained schemes to attract more visitors to the temple? When hadn't she had to nag, threaten, cajole and bribe him before he consented to take his medicine and herbal brews? Was that perhaps his way of making up for his past mistakes? By preparing Rei and making her more independent and self reliant so she would not make the mistake her mother did? 

"Well here we are. Holden Manor." Marcus told her and stepped out beside Rei. Through the shaded lenses, Rei cast a glance towards him but he was too busy watching the building to notice. If the pride in his voice hadn't revealed his feelings, there was certainly no mistaking the emotion in his eyes when he stared at his home.

"You grew up here?" She asked more out of politeness than real interest. She already knew the answer from reading her mother's diary. 

"Yes, Madame had this house rebuilt in the early fifties. It got burned down in a fire and instead of redoing it the way it was, she wanted something new. James Arlington designed the house and Franco, your grandfather that is, presided over the building. Actually that was how Madame and he got together." Marcus told her with a smile.

Rei noticed that he hadn't mention the fact that Madame couldn't have been happier to see the old place burned to the ground. She knew that the estate hadn't always been named Holden Manor. Initially it had been in the ownership of the Hamiltons, an old prestigious family that could link all the way back to the Mayflower. Madame, like all of the members of her family, had been under the Hamiltons employment before she married her first husband, Edward Hamilton, whom also happened to be the eldest son. Sakura hadn't known all the details but she had however gotten the impression that it hadn't been a marriage of love nor had Madame's relationship been any warmer with the rest of the Hamiltons. In fact bad blood seemed to have flowed there which was why Madame had ordered a whole new building to be built over the ashes of the old one. 

Efficient, defiant and vindictive the method fit very well with the woman Rei was starting to picture as Madame Holden. 

"Come let's go inside. Emmett will take care of your things." Martin suggested and led Rei towards the mansion. 

At the mention of her things, Rei had to conceal the slight wince she felt. She hadn't wanted to bring her stuff with her in the first place. The last things she wanted was to spend a night in what was viewed as the official home of the Holdens. But Martin had insisted that she packed a bag for the whole weekend. Somehow he had designated himself as her guide/driver for the next few days and she suspected the only way she would be able to leave the place was to plow him over bodily. The man did have an awful lot of patience and it was damn annoying, especially when they were of opposite opinions. 

The wide mahogany door with stained glass opened the moment they neared it and an elderly man in an immaculate black suit and white collar, greeted them. He was tall and very, very thin looking and held himself completely erect when he greeted them. 

"Good morning, master Martin. Miss Rei." He nodded his slightly in acknowledgement to Rei. 

"Bentley." Martin greeted and handed him his coat and portfolio. "Bentley's the majoron here." He explained to Rei as they entered the opened spaced three-story stairhall. Rose and gold colors reflected from the stained glass windows on the ceiling and mixed with the pale colors of the limestone floor. Rei could see butterfly staircases with what looked like hand carved banisters, curve gently to the second floor landing. Bell-like sounds chimed from the crystals on the giant size chandelier above them, created by the cool breeze that flowed through the opened windows. 

"Would you like to have breakfast before joining the others in the Sun Room?" Bentley inquired. "I do believe Maria and the others have not cleared the table yet." 

"Rei?" Martin gave Rei a questioning look. 

Rei shook her head. The giant breakfast she took this morning was still sitting like a rock in her stomach. She was unused to eating that much food in the morning but the culinary skills at _Ceasar's_ was excellent and she hadn't been able to refuse it. It was like eating one of Mako's dishes. 

"In that case maybe we should take you to the study and meet Madame." Martin suggested. 

Bentley cleared his throat discreetly. "I'm afraid that won't be possible. Madame has not yet arrived." 

Martin frowned. "That's strange. I'd assumed she would be here by now. I got the feeling she was very keen on us all getting here before three o'clock."

"It is not my business to ask questions." Bentley told him with a straight face, his tone clearly saying that it shouldn't be Martin's either. Rei suspected that the old guy probably knew the whole reason but he wouldn't reveal it even if you tried to use a crowbar to pry it out. 

As they stood there in the hall with the sunray spilling through the stained glass, Rei felt like a window was opening in the back of her mind. Through it she could see a younger version of Bentley dressed in the same immaculate black uniform and wearing the same wooden expression and shuttered eyes. The hair was thicker and darker in color and the face less gaunt and wore fewer lines. Unlike now however, the stone face had been graced with a tiny smile as they looked down on her. 

Come to think about it, her mother had mentioned a certain butler which she had been very fond of. A very loyal but fair man, in her diary; a man who was very fond of children and had very nimble fingers that could slip candies into the pocket of a certain girl's dress without anyone seeing it. 

Rei's vision blurred and she was once again moved back to the present. Her eyes met the piercing black ones of the butler's. Whatever he saw in her eyes and whatever he thought, Rei could only imagine. There was no recognition or acknowledgement on his side that would lead her to believe he still held any feelings for that little girl. 

Something told her that she wouldn't be getting any sort of reaction from him until she had met Madame. Bentley was that kind of loyal servant.

She had to admit that she was a bit amused by it. She hadn't realized there was still this kind of servant-master relationship left in this world. She was pretty sure even Nate who commanded loyalty from his employees wouldn't be able to receive this kind of treatment. Then again this thing felt more like it belonged in the regency era. 

The three of them trailed down the hallway further into the house. Rei pretended to be studying the place while she keenly listened to Martin and Bentley's conversation. 

"Has everybody else arrived then?" Martin asked.

"Everybody but Miss Charmaine and Master Jay. Miss Mina has been held up and will arrive tomorrow instead. Most of the family members are gathered in the Sun Room."

"Jay's not back yet from England?" 

"We are expecting him at any minute." Bentley informed him.

"Good, I can't wait to hear how the meeting went." Martin said with satisfaction. Turning back to Rei he smiled down at her and said, "Well since Madame is not here yet, why don't I introduce you to the rest of the family instead?" He suggested and led her down a bright hallway with arched French windows along one side. 

"I can't wait." Rei mumbled under her breath recalling the last meeting she had with "family" members. When she received a questioning look from Martin though, she quickly smiled and nodded her head. 

Bentley opened the wide double pale doors to the Sun Room for them closing it discreetly behind them.

The moment Rei entered the room she could understand its name. Sunlight flooded in to the room through the large windows that covered one side of the wall, bathing everything in pale golden hues. The wallpapers were of pale pastel colored flowers and the furniture the kind that reminded Rei of old Victorian homes. Even the people in there reminded her of that time.

There were in total six people in the room: two men and four women. The women were sitting on the settees in pairs forming an L facing the two men who were lounging against the wall on each side of the large fireplace. All were dressed in dark clothes and all six turned to face the door as Rei and Martin entered; in silence. Whatever conversation they might have been having stopped the moment the doors had opened. 

"Well this is a pleasant surprise to find all of you gathered in here at the same time." Martin said brightly, "Everyone, this is Rei."

The silence that hung in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife. 

Unfazed by the lack of cooperation from his family, Martin put a hand on Rei's back and gently urged her forward. "Come Rei. Let me introduce you to my brother first." He stopped in front of the man who was standing closest to them. "This is my older brother Terrence. Terrence, this is Rei." 

The man didn't look the least of bit like Martin. He had two white wings alongside his temples ascending the dark colors of hair. Where Martin was leaner in the face, Terrence had much stronger features. His jaw was wider, his eyes heavier and the brows were more pronounced. He was also slightly shorter and stockier in build.

He looked down at Rei with emotionless blue eyes.

Since good manners prompted, Rei extended her hand to him. "Sir." 

While his handshake was firm, it was also brief. Nor did she get more in reply to her greeting than a grunt. 

She got his message loud and clear. She was not welcome here. Unlike Martin, Terrence obviously didn't think much about the family connection. Had she not read her mother's diary and thus some pre-information of the members Rei would probably have been surprised at his behavior but the fact that her mother had gotten the same kind of treatment when she was first introduced to Terrence, helped to soften the edge. Apparently Terrence and her father had not been that close and Terrence had a tendency to transfer his dislike over to everyone else in Marcus' company. 

Rei didn't get the chance to pay Terrence more attention since Martin was already too busy pushing her to the next member, which happened to be a regal looking woman with rich dark curly tresses. Martin introduced her as Marcia, Terrence's wife. 

If Terrence's handshake had been brief, the one she got from the woman couldn't even be termed as one. Their hands barely touched before the woman dropped it again. She didn't bother to look at Rei either. Rei was starting to suspect that it must have been their charming personalities that had brought Terrence and Marcia together. Though how they could have stood each other for over twenty five years was something beyond Rei's comprehension. 

The next was an elderly small woman with silver hair neatly pulled back in a thick bun. She wore enough strands of pearls around her neck to make Rei wonder if the fragile looking bones would break under the strain. She was shocked when Martin introduced her as Louisa Derrington, her great aunt and Madame's _younger _sister. The woman kept both hands steadily on the top of her cane and something told Rei to not bother extending her hand in greeting. Rei couldn't help but to wonder how Madame would look like if the younger sister was in this shape. From what her mother said in the diary, Louisa is supposed to be at least eleven years her sister's junior. 

Next came the woman sitting by Louisa's right, whom Marcus introduced as Patricia or Trish for short. She was Louisa's eldest daughter. Unlike her mother Trish's hair was a rich copper tone and held back by a simple golden clasp at the nape of her neck. Her black dress was simple and she wore no other jewels on her aside from the gold band on her finger. She greeted Rei with a brief handshake and a nod of the head. The first acknowledgement Rei received since she entered the room. Her eyes were downcast the whole time though as if fearing to meet Rei's eyes. Rei didn't know whether to be annoyed or amused by it. Was she afraid of her somehow? What did she expect she would do? Attack her?

If Trish had seemed timid, the same could certainly not be said of the last woman. Her eyes, the color of rich coffee, stared at Rei's with cool distaste before turning her face away as if she the mere sight offended her. Rei wondered if she was supposed to take offense at that. It wasn't as if the whole thing was an honor for her. Hell she was only doing it for Martin's sake. The woman was named Tory Holden. She was the widow of Glenn Holden, the only son of Madame's older brother Fred.

And last they came to a full circle with the young man lounging lazily with an elbow resting against the marble mantelpiece. He was introduced as Frederic, Tory's son. Aside from the cool quality in his blue eyes, Rei couldn't see much resemblance between mother and son. At least he had more manners than his mother or any of the others in the room by being the only one who actually gave Rei a normal handshake. 

"Martin. Could you come with me for a sec? I need to have a word with you in private." Terrence said the moment his brother finished with the last introduction. 

Martin gave him a plaintive look. "Can't it wait 'til later?" 

Terrence cast a brief glance towards Rei and then said evenly. "No it can't." Then without another word he headed towards the door and indicated with his head for his younger brother to follow. 

"I'm sorry, my dear." Martin cast Rei an apologetic look. 

Though she would have liked nothing better than to stomp on Terrence's foot with the heel of her shoes, Rei was instead forced to keep a tight reign on her temper and plaster a smile her face. Giving her uncle - there was no use in trying to deny the relationship when the man was really looking after her like one - a reassuring squeeze with her hand, she said. "You go ahead. I'll be fine."

She wondered if this was going to turn into a habit. Every time Martin is to show her around, one of his family members would stop him. She wasn't welcome here. They have made that plain enough already. Was it necessary for them to show her that again and again? She wasn't a blind idiot. 

"Have Trish show you around the place. And I'll see you at dinner if not before." Martin told her and gave her quick peck on the cheek before leaving to follow his brother with hurried steps.

The moment the door closed behind him Louisa gave a loud snort. "Ordering people around. Who does he think he is? Trish, you will do no such thing, you hear? I need help getting ready for the dinner. These silly servants don't know how to attend a lady."

"Yes mother." Trish murmured quietly. She cast Rei an apologetic look before she dropped her eyes down on her clasped hands again. 

The bear with the sore-tooth and the ice queen. The she-dragon and the timid mouse. The snotty bitch and the bored rich son, Rei mused. _And I'm actually related to these people._

"So you came all the way from Tokyo, hmm?" Marcia said and twirled the silver spoon around her cup with precise controlled movement.

"Yes." She kept the reply simple and short, sensing there was more to it than just a simple inquiry. 

"That's quite a long trip." Marcia observed. She lifted the spoon clicked once against the side of the cup before setting it down on the coaster. 

"You would be amazed at how fast a trip can take on an airplane." Rei told her dryly. Especially, she added in her mind, when one was flying one of Maxfield's Jets.

Marcia's dark eyes narrowed. 

"Don't be rude, child. Or don't they teach you manners in that little corner of the world of yours?" Tory told her tartly.

Turning her head in the woman's direction, Rei quirked her brow slightly. "Oh they teach us manners alright. Far more than in some places I would say." She replied calmly.

"Are you calling us rude, girl?" Louisa demanded and thudded her cane against the floor with force to emphasize her feelings. The thick rug muffled most of the sound. 

"I wouldn't presume to say anything like that, mam." Rei told her though the way she angled her head and thrust her chin upwards clearly said she did.

No matter how she had promised herself to behave, Rei could see that this was fast turning into the same situation as she had with Tanya two days ago. The best thing she knew would be to retreat and avoid a quarrel but the problem was when it came to people asking for a fight, she never did know how to back down from them. 

"If our manners offend you so much then why come in the first place?" Tory demanded and set down her teacup with enough force to make the china rattle. 

"I never said that." Rei corrected her evenly.

"No but you hinted as much." Frederic pointed out mildly without taking his eyes off from studying his fingernails; a gesture that clearly spoke of his boredom. 

Rei cast him an annoyed look. So he was going to join the gang too. "I only replied in the same manner I was given. If you read more to it than that then that's _your_ problem." 

"You want to know what our problem is?" Tory demanded and rose from the seat angrily. "You! You are our problem. You don't belong here. This is a family situation. One that is strictly reserved for the close members of the family and you are not part of it."

"Tory, please let's not go that far. Rei is after all Marcus' – " Trish began but her mother cut her off with. "Be quiet, Trish." Louisa hissed something else under her breath but whatever she said, Rei did not manage to catch it as Marcia chose to address her at the same moment. 

"So tell me… Rei." She said the name as it she was something very foreign and hard to pronounce for her and therefore a bother. "Why are you here?" 

Rei met her inquiring dark eyes steadily. "I'm here just like the rest of you. To pay my respect to my father."

One dark wing arched up. "Oh really? And why would you do that considering that you have never considered him your father for the past sixteen years or so?"

Rei opened her mouth to correct her but before she even managed to utter a sound, Marcia barreled on. 

"Don't bother to deny it. I know for a fact that that is exactly how you feel. Marcus told me. You never called him father. You didn't address him at all and you barely talked to him. And you refused to live with him. Tell me is that the way a daughter should have treated her father?" 

Rei was speechless. The burning anger that she was feeling was threatening to choke her. How dared the woman question her relationship with her father? And was this actually what her father had claimed? That she was the one who had disowned him? Is this why everyone was treating her like something the cat dragged in? 

Before her anger managed to take hold of her completely something flickered in Marcia's eyes that caught Rei's attention and made her reassess the situation. Her instinct told her that the woman's attitude towards her wasn't as much for her father's benefit as her own. The woman seemed to really dislike Rei. Was this her way of trying to make Rei look bad? What she actually setting a trap for her? The whole thought seemed ridiculous to Rei and yet her instincts were telling her exactly that and they had yet to guide her wrong.

Feelings as if she was walking blindfolded over a room filled with pitfalls, Rei chose her words carefully. "It is true that in many people's eyes our relationship can be termed as distant." Actually the two of them were more like strangers than father and daughter. But that was not something Rei was about to go into with these people. So instead she said with lifted chin. "Nevertheless he is still my father."

"Oh, of course. Now that the man is dead and it's convenient to call him that." Marcia gave her an indulgent smile. 

Anger came to life once again like a torch being lit in the darkness and her eyes flashed at the insinuation but before she could give the woman a piece of her mind a new voice joined the conversation. 

"Really, Marcia that was uncalled for." 

Five faces turned to the door where the newcomer had arrived. Through the red haze in her vision, Rei saw the tall lean frame of Jaycen Arlington filling the threshold. His suit was slung over his arm and he held a black briefcase in the hand while he leaned casually against the doorframe. The collar of his white shirt had been loosened and the tie was sticking out from front pocket of his pants. The blonde hair was unruly, a result of either having dragged his hand through his hair a lot of times or driving with the window open. He looked exactly like a man who had come back from a long trip. 

"This is after all Rei's first time back in the house after so many years. The least we can do is to show some hospitality." Jay continued as if not noticing the silence that had fallen in the room and sauntered in. Setting aside his jacket and briefcase on the deep cushioned chair, he leaned closer and gave Louisa a kiss on the cheek. 

"Hello, darling. You are looking well." He told her with a smile.

To Rei's utter surprise she actually saw a blush creep up the elderly woman's cheeks. The blush along with the twinkling blue eyes took off years from her face. 

"Scamp. Have you decided to finally show your sorry behind around here?" Louisa grunted and tried to smack at him with her cane. Anybody with eyes could see it was a half hearted effort that he could easily evade. 

"If I had known you were waiting for me, I would have asked the pilot to fly faster." Jay winked at her. 

Marcia threw him a dark look. She hadn't forgiven him for the interruption.

Tory folded her arms and sniffed disdainfully. 

He ignored both of them and turned his attention to Trish. "Hey there, gorgeous. Still watching over Louisa here, huh? How am I going to whisk her away and ask her to marry me if you're always guarding her like this?"

Louisa snorted. "You leave her be. She doesn't need any sweet talking from a rascal like you. Don't you go corrupting her." 

Jay threw her a quick smile but there was something in his eyes, something that flickered and was gone in a few seconds that told Rei he might have had an ulterior motive for wanting Trish to be away from Louisa's side. Could it be that he felt sorry for the daughter? Somehow the thought was a bit difficult to comprehend for Rei. It was hard for her picture the same angry and narrow minded man she had met two days ago with this sensitive and helpful one she was seeing now.

"Where are Martin and Terrence?" Jay asked and sat down on the arm rest by Louisa's side, his right hand draped lazily over the older woman's frail shoulders. 

"Why haven't Bentley already reported to you about that?" Frederic sneered from the wall. 

Jay cast him a fleeting look much like someone looking at a small annoying fly. "I didn't meet Bentley on my way in. Susannah told me the family was gathered here. Besides we all know the only person Bentley reports to around here is Madame." 

"Oh do we?" Came the challenging reply. 

The two men stared at each other. Rei didn't know what to say about the newest arrival in this charming gathering but she was certainly glad that she wasn't the only one who didn't seem to get along with everyone here. From what she could see, Marcia, Tory and Frederic at least weren't overly fond of Jay. Marcia's was probably because of what he did earlier but something told Rei Tory's and Frederic's dislike of the man went deeper than just annoyance. 

Briefly she wondered how Jaycen Arlington was connected to the family. Martin only introduced the man to her but he never said anything about him being related and yet from the way Louisa and Trish treated him, they certainly considered him as part of the family.

Her skin prickled with awareness and turning her attention towards the source, Rei found a pair of clear blue eyes studying her. As their eyes met, his lips pulled back slightly in smile and he nodded his head slightly towards her in acknowledgment. 

Mystified at the warm greeting, well warm if she compared to what she had received from the others here, Rei wondered what exactly the man was up to. Was this his way of apologizing to her for his earlier behavior towards her at Martin's office? 

Whatever it was Rei never got the chance to find out because at that time the door opened once more. Hoping that it was Martin who had come back Rei turned towards the door. Over the ten feet of space violet eyes met violet eyes and a jolt went through her body like an electric shock. 

Everybody in the room came in to life the moment the woman entered, but Rei barely noticed what they were doing or saying since she was far too preoccupied studying what could only be the infamous Madame Holden - her paternal grandmother.

Madame was certainly tall for a woman of her age. Even in practical flat shoes, she looked to be at least five feet seven – most of the elderly women Rei knew never went beyond five feet four. Just like her sister, Madame's hair had completely gone silver, but whereas the younger one had pulled back hers in a severe bun, Madame had chosen to let it fall loosely down to her shoulders, framing a heart shaped face. Unlike Louisa, Madame seemed to have aged with grace, aside form the visible lines against the side of her eyes and around her throat there were barely any wrinkles on her face at all or at least they were tiny enough not to be noticed from afar. The sharpness in her large eyes also revealed an alert mind that was far younger than her body. Like the rest of the clan, Madame's choice of clothes was simple and elegant. A white cross on a delicate silver chain rested against her chest, it was starkly contrasted against black fabrics of her dress. 

Her lips were thin and they turned even thinner when she let her eyes roam around the room without stopping specifically at anyone. Rei felt her gaze and stiffened unconsciously in expectation. But the gaze flew over her like she didn't exist. 

"I see that you have all gathered. That's good. Now spare the chit chat. We'll talk more this evening after dinner. You and you. Come with me." She indicated with her eyes first Jay and then Frederic. "I want to know just what happened in London." 

Without sparing them another glance she turned and left the room like a general dismissing her troops. Both men followed her like well trained soldiers, each making a good job of ignoring the other's presence while walking side by side.

Rei struggled with a sense of disappointment and anger. Given the reception she had gotten from the Holden members, she knew she shouldn't have expected much, and yet somehow the cool dismissal stung. The woman hadn't even looked at her aside from that brief eye contact when she entered. To her, it was as if Rei didn't even exist. 

__

If that's the way she feels, then why did she bother to fetch me from Japan? 

From where she sat, Louisa coughed lightly. "Trish, help me up. I think I'll go take a nap before its time to get ready for dinner." She told her daughter and held up one arm for the woman to assist her.

"Well, wasn't that interesting." Tory said with satisfaction and threw Rei a gloating smile the moment mother and daughter had left the room.

"Yes obviously someone had thought far too highly of herself. It would have been much better if you had just stayed where you were." Marcia observed with a dry voice, voicing Rei's inner thoughts before she glided out of the room.

"You know if I were you, I might seriously think about asking Bentley to send something up to the room instead of going down to eat dinner with the rest of the family. Trust me, honey even old Martin won't be giving you much support now that Madame has given her verdict." Tory told her sweetly from the threshold before closing the door after herself.

Rei figured it was a good thing the woman had disappeared that quickly or she would probably have been likely to punch her. She had thought that Tanya had been the most obnoxious and hateful woman she had ever had the displeasure of meeting but after today she realized the top position was quickly filling up with people. 

Just what the hell were these people's problems? Were they always this rude or was it just some kind of a special treatment for her? And why? What has she ever done to any of them to deserve this? She didn't even know them. Or was it because of her father? Were they doing it for his sake? 

The thought of them carrying on the silent battle that she'd been having with her father for years now, made her even angrier. Just what right did they have to judge her? They knew nothing of their relationship. Granted she might not have been the world's greatest daughter but then again he wouldn't have won any prize either. 

Who else but him would ask his secretary to pick up birthday and Christmas gifts for his daughter? Who else but he would send his assistance to celebrate his daughter's birthdays because he was caught up in "important" meetings? Where was he when she was sick and needed someone to take care of her? Where was he when she woke up from a nightmare and needed comfort? Where was he when she got singled out at school by the other girls because of her strange abilities? What about the first time she got her heart broken? 

She could add so many things but what was the point? The man was dead and she would never get the chance to find out the answers to her questions. Because she could feel the familiar hollow feeling grow within her at the thought about her father and it only agitated her, Rei forcefully pushed aside all thoughts about her father. 

To cool herself, Rei decided to take a walk outside. The fresh air and the serenity outside beckoned her and she figured the chances of her meeting up with unwanted persona – which in this case would be everyone in this household – would be minimum. She couldn't leave, as much as she and everyone else for that matter wanted to, she was not able to leave until after the funeral. The moment she had left Japan her fate was sealed and she was forced to see this to the very end. Despite everything, he was still her father and like she told Marcia, it was her duty as a daughter to be at the funeral. 

As she walked along the well mowed lawn close to where the terrace ended and the garden began, the cell-phone in her purse started to ring and vibrate at the same time. Because she recognized the music, having programmed it to ring especially for that person, Rei wore a smile that transferred directly to her voice when she answered. "Hey snail, finally decided to call me back now huh?" 

"I'm soooooo sorry, Rei. It became later than I expected. I didn't want to risk waking you up, since I knew you would be leaving for your trip." Mako told her with a sheepish voice. 

Rei rolled her eyes heavenwards. From the sound of Mako's voice, she could almost imagine her wearing a slight blush to go with that dreamy look that was no doubt painted on her eyes. What the hell where they? Animals? They've been married for four years now and their daughter nearly as old too. Shouldn't they be tired of each other by now? It's just sex. While enjoyable it's hardly that addictive.

When she told her childhood friend that, she got a snort in reply. "That's what you think. You just haven't found the right one yet. Believe when that happens you'll know the difference."

Rei mentally shook her head. There she went again. Mako was a firm believer that each person was just a half of a whole being and once you found that second half of you, you would be complete. To Mako that person was Nathan and Rei had to admit that they did complete each other very well. Two lost souls roaming the earth searching until they found home in each other. But that was just in their case. 

"Well enough said about me. What about you? How did it go?"

"Remember that schooltrip we took to Okinawa back in high school?" Rei told her dryly. "Let's just say I would rather take that one again than be here." 

"Ouch. That bad, huh?" Mako's voice was all sympathetic at hearing her referral to what they had dubbed amongst themselves the trip to Hell. In Rei's case it had gotten so bad that she came back with her left arm in a sling. She had refused to take a trip anywhere outside of Tokyo for years after that. 

"What happened?" 

Rei sighed and sat down on one of the many marble benches that were strewn out along the garden and started telling her friend all about the welcoming committee that greeted her. Like a true friend, Mako was outraged on Rei's behalf. She spent next few minutes after Rei finished, ranting and raving on the other end and giving a good and vivid description of what she would like to do to teach them some manners, especially Tory. The mental image of seeing Mako hang that snotty bitch upside down over a burning pyre, had Rei grinning. 

"Of course we could always ask Ami to come up with more sophisticated methods of torture." Mako added as an afterthought. 

"I doubt we need to go that far." Rei told her wryly. Ami for all her harmless look and peaceful attitude did have a frightening fascination towards knifelike objects ranging from scalpels to ancient ritual daggers. 

"Ok. But still don't let them get to you too much, hon. They're probably just jealous of you. I doubt they would have dared to behave the same way had the old lady been around."

Jealous? Why would they be jealous of her? No, once again Mako was galloping on her wild horses. Rei didn't choose to dig further into that department. "I doubt that it would have made any difference. Mako, she didn't even acknowledge my presence when she saw me. She just completely ignored me."

Rei hadn't meant to mention the last part but somehow the words came tumbling out on their own and with them came also the hollow feeling in her chest and the stinging in her eyes. 

There was a brief silence on the other end and then Mako said gently. "Would you like me to come and get you? I can be there in two hours max." 

Because the offer was sincere, completely daring – since the drive would normally take at least four hours - and so like Mako, Rei couldn't help but to laugh as she felt her spirit lift. 

"Thanks but no. I might cash in that offer in the future though." 

"Anytime, honey. Don't push yourself. If you feel like you can't stand their offensive presence later tonight then just call and the rescue team will come."

"You have no idea how much that means to me, Mako. To hear those words." Rei told her sincerely, a wistful look on her eyes. "I'll use them as my source of strength as I endure this place. But I can't leave. I have to see this through."

"I know." Mako said simply understanding her in a way that only those sharing a strong bond of friendship could. "Just remember, no matter how bad they treat you, you'll always have people who love you outside of that place." 

Leaning backwards, Rei studied the sky, a content smile dancing across her full lips. "I know." Mako was right. She shouldn't let them get to her. After all they meant nothing to her. Her real family was out there waiting for her. She had her grandfather and Ami waiting back home in Tokyo and she had Mako, Nathan and Grace just four hours away. And those were the people that counted. Not the bunch of snotty people in that mansion behind her whom had spent the last sixteen years of her life ignoring her.

"So tell me how's my goddaughter doing? Any new antics?" Rei asked deciding to change the subject to something far brighter and closer to her heart.

She got a loud snort in reply. "I tell you she's turning into a monster. You know she just painted our walls with red lipstick? I have no idea how she managed to filch my lipstick but the whole hallway, dining room and music room is filled with happy suns. I'm just glad she didn't manage to reach the entertainment room before I got hold of her. I can just imagine the explosion Nate will have if he discovered his beloved stereo systems wearing makeup. Not that _she_ would get the brunt of it. Oh no _I'm_ the one who will be listening to his moaning for the next few weeks then."

Rei's shoulder shook as she laughed at the girl's inventiveness. Actually she wouldn't have minded to see Nathan's face turn red as he contained his anger in front of his daughter. If anyone was a sucker for those doe eyes, it was Nathan. He was already spoiling her rotten. 

~ o ~ 

From the main house, Jay watched the Asian woman sitting on the bench by the garden laugh in delight, her face lightning up and a complete abandonment surrounding her as she talked on the cell-phone. 

Studying her from afar, he had to admit Marcus' daughter looked quite lovely. He hadn't noticed that the first time he saw her, partly because he had been too angry thinking she was another one of those scams trying to make a quick buck and partly due to the fact that her eyes had always been afire with anger. But as she sat there in her white dress with her long hair spreading out like a raven cloak down her back, her face warm and alight, surrounded by the very colors of spring, she did make quite a picture. She looked like a woman who was clearly enjoying the surrounding nature as well as the company. He wondered who it was that she was talking to. It must be someone close to put that kind of expression on her face. 

Jay felt a tug of envy as he watched her. He wouldn't have minded a dash of fresh air and the company of a friend himself. It certainly beat where he was at the moment. 

As if on queue, the stern voice of Madame's drifted from the background and cut through Jay's musings like a rapier. "Jay, are you finished with your daydreams yet to focus on the problem at hand?"

Taking his time, Jay turned from the window where he had spent the last five minutes lounging while the rest of the room hatched on the problem at hand and looked at Madame. He could feel all other eyes trained on him and he could sense the smug look Frederic was casting his way but he chose to ignore him and the rest as well as he met the matriarch's eyes steadily. 

"I told you before my take on the whole situation, mam." He told her calmly not even surprised that the look that used to terrify him as a child no longer held the same power over him. He didn't know whether it was because he had gotten used to that look or because of the path he had chosen to take which would lead him to be her opponent. One could feel admiration and respect for an adversary but not fear. 

Madame's lips turned into a thin line as she studied him, a reaction created either by his reply or his attitude; either way the bottom line was it didn't please her. 

"Well I expect you to get some results. I want to know how in the hell Tridell could once again snatch a large contract like that from right under our nose. My contacts in England told me everything was settled and all that was left was a formal meeting before they signed the papers. Tridell wasn't even among those approached by the Brits."

Jay shrugged. "The project was hardly a secret. Tridell must have worked through channels of their own, to acquire a meeting. It's a bit unethical in the business but hardly unheard of."

"Well I want to know who their contact is over there and how they managed to yet again to be one step ahead of us and whether or not there is a leak among us." The last was said with a hard slap against the smooth mahogany surface making several eyes twitch in reaction. They were all used to this kind of forceful commands by now to control their bodies from jumping. 

"If there truly is a leak among us, I want that leak plugged. Understood?" It was a rhetorical question.

"Darien is working on that." Jay informed her. "Hopefully he might have some information for us tomorrow."

Madame nodded her head in approval. "That boy has a good head between those shoulders and he should ferret out any information in London fast enough." 

From the corner of his eyes, Jay saw Frederic's lips tighten in dislike and he felt almost like letting the smugness show on his face. 

While only a year younger than Jay and Darien, the difference in skills between them and Frederic was always been apparent even as children. The fact that it won the appreciation on Madame's part never did sit well with younger man. To him it was bad enough that he had to compete with the Jay, whom in his eyes had no right to even be involved in the family business but the fact that an outsider like Darien Shields, also managed to capture the matriarch's eyes and worse advanced faster than him in the company, was a pure insult. He had made that known plenty of times; to both of them, though wisely never in Madame's presence.

"Martin, have you managed to find out more background on that company, like I told you to?"

"Only as far as Grant Maxfield being one of the key-figures." Martin made a face. 

"Grant Maxfield doesn't have the resources to build Tridell that fast. He must have others backing him up."

"If he has his old man backing him, he could. Adam Maxfield is considered one of the most powerful men in this country." James pointed out mildly from his seat, opposite Madame. It was the first thing he had said since they entered the room. 

Since he preferred the role of an observer in these kinds of meetings and only spoke when there was something of importance, all attention was keenly focused on Jay's grandfather. 

An elderly man nearing eighty, James Arlington was the epitome of a British Gentleman, though his family had long since lost the title go to with it. 

"Aye, but Adam Maxfield doesn't deal in construction business. His area of expertise is in high tech. Besides he is known for his harshness when it comes to his sons endeavoring on businesses outside of his own empire. He threw his elder son out when the boy refused to join his business." Madame snapped. 

Snowy white hair crowning a classical handsome face, enhanced the rich blueness of his eyes as they met the flashing eyes opposite him with a mild interest. Any other man would have been offended at rudeness but James only took it in his stride. "That is true. But a man can change with the years. Maybe the estrangement between him and the older son had made him realize the errors of his ways. The boy did prove him wrong. Besides from what I recall on the brief encounters I've had with Adam, he always did favor Grant. It is worth checking out." 

There was a long silence as Madame seemed to mull over his words then she snapped. "Frederic, look in on that."

"Yes, mam." The man in question replied with an unreadable face. "If I may say so, I think its worth checking out other sources as well. I could - "

"We've already established that and no just concentrate on ferreting out whether or not Maxus has any connection to Tridell and use the rest of your time to gather up a press conference. No doubt this shit has already hit the media by now. I want damage control."

"Yes, mam." Frederic replied with a sullen tone. It was obvious he didn't like being told to do his job. 

If the old lady noticed she chose to ignore it, instead she focused her attention on the others. "Like I said, I want to know as much as I can about this Tridell company as you can dig up. All the key personnel, all their current building projects as well as their upcoming and prospective ones. I want them all. Once or twice can be a coincidence but they've taken on our turf too many times now to be anything but that. If Holden Inc is what they're after then they have a hard battle coming ahead. Martin, keep on following the money trace. Jay, don't loose any more projects. So get to work."

Like a general who had dismissed her soldiers they all left the study, all except for Terrence who was held back by his mother. The rest of them all went in their different stages of emotions. Frederic was stalking out his long strides easily carrying him away from the rest of them in moments. For once Jay shared his feelings. Madame's reprimand of him loosing another project really galled him but unlike Frederic, he had a better control of his emotions; feelings that he could easily vent with a few good laps in the pool. 

Martin on the other hand went about as usual. Nothing in his manners or expressions revealed any sort of resentment or frustration for that matter. Then again he might not be affected in either way. He was a man who took things in strides be it in business or personal crises, the only one Jay had ever seen being able to ruffle him any way had been Tanya. 

"Jay, you going back to the House?" James asked as he headed for the right towards the doors that led to the terrace.

"Yes."

"Then I'll join you, for a short bit. I would like to take a walk along the garden before dinner. Exercise will do these old joints wonders." James told him and easily fell into steps with him.

Being able to read people was a skill Jay learned a long a time ago and while some were more difficult to read than others, like his grandfather, he thought he knew the old man well enough now to understand his intention to speak in private. 

He waited until they reached the end of the terrace, far enough from eyes and ears to pick up what they said – Marcus' daughter was nowhere in sight - before he spoke up. "So what did you want to talk to me about, Gramps?" 

"Don't let what Maxine said get to you. She was agitated and when she is like that she has a tendency to lash out at people. She did not mean that you did a bad job." He was referring to Madame by her real name. Of everyone she knew, he was the only one who was allowed to do that. 

Jay looked at his grandfather from the corner of his eyes. He knew he shouldn't have been surprised at how well the older man knew him but it still amazed him. 

"I'm not angry at her. I'm angry at myself. I should have been more prepared. I should have seen it coming." 

The thought of the obnoxious trio that exited the meeting room right when he and Darien were to enter, still made his blood boil. The smirk on their face, should have warned him that something was a foot but he had taken it as arrogance on their part. There could be no way anyone would be able to match their offer and their price, not without loosing money. They had done a lot of work and research to make sure they gave the best price and conditions by scouring their network and acquiring the most suitable people for the project given the budget. Aside from the design the most time and effort had been put into acquiring the contractors for this project. And yet somehow Tridell had managed to snatch the project from right underneath their nose. 

"There's no way you could have known that without having your own moles in that company." James told him and clapped in him gently on the shoulder.

Jay turned to look at him. "So you do believe there is a leak among us."

James nodded his head. "I might not be involved in the business anymore but I still have enough knowledge about it to make my guesses."

The reminder of James' so called retirement of Holden Inc, sent another surge of anger through Jay. "There's no reason why you shouldn't be involved." He disagreed and shifted the jacket in his arms. It was a gesture born out of aggravation rather than necessity. "You helped to build it."

James studied his grandson, his keen eyes taking in the hard profile, the blue flames in his eyes and the slight stiffness in his shoulder and sighed. "Son, we've had this talk before. The company might have been partly mine once but it no longer is. I made that choice ten years ago when I sold my shares to Maxine."

Jay stopped turned to face his grandfather. "It's still a part of you. You can't deny it or else you wouldn't still care so much about what's happening to it."

James shook his head. "The company I helped to build, no longer exists. From the day it changed its name into Holden Inc it took on another route. From being steered by the combined dreams of mine, Fred's and Maxine's, it became her dreams. She polished into the star it is today. The caring I have towards the company today results from the two of you not from any old sentiments on my part. It is because I know how much it means to the two of you and I want to help you through this crisis." 

"You're wrong. The company became a success because of the combined dreams of all of you. It's true that Madame made the company grow but times are changing. Her dreams are no longer enough to keep this ship afloat as the competition keeps on tightening. If she wasn't so set in her ways she would realize by now that yours and Marcus' ideas might fit the company's image better." Jay argued, the frustration he felt lacing his voice.

While he understood his grandson's dilemma, James also understood his love's point of view and worst of all he sympathized with both. 

Jay was young and daring, his mind filled with ideas and plans on how to expand the company and bring it from the state of non-growth that is had been in for the past few years. James had been young too and understood the need to show the world its worth. Some people claimed that being born with a golden spoon in one's mouth was something to be envied but what they didn't realize was that it brought along other problems such as proving to oneself and others that one did have skills too. 

And yet with age came also wisdom. To have put that much time, effort and passion into building an empire, James could understand that Maxine was not that eager to loose it all on daring ventures such as changing the company's state of mission. Nor did she give up her dreams that easily. To a patriot like Maxine, helping countries to build their landmarks was the most important part even though they rarely generated much revenue. 

The difference in opinions had led to several heated exchange between Jay and Maxine recently and he suspected would lead more in the future until they finally settled it. Both were extremely stubborn. 

One thing was sure however, he was not going to let either of them drag him into this. 

"If you truly believe that then I wish you luck, son. However," He added and put a hand that was surprisingly strong on the young man's shoulder. "before you venture any further think carefully of your motives. Are you doing it because you truly care about the company and you believe in yourself or are you doing it because you still hold the notion that you need to fight back my claim on the company? If it's because of the latter then I can tell you right now to stop."

"And why is that? The company belongs as much to you as it does to her." Jay pointed out stubbornly.

"I sold it." James told him gravely.

"Because you needed the money to bail out dad. She shouldn't have taken advantage of that. Once you managed to put your economy back in order she should have offered to sell your shares back to you."

James grabbed Jay's other shoulder his blue eyes intent. "That's enough. I won't have you speaking that way about her. Do you hear me?" He warned. "You have a lot to be grateful, both you and your sister. Maxine has been more than generous with the both of you and I won't have you talking in that disrespectful tone to her or by God I will give you a sound beating no matter how old you are."

The threat didn't bother Jay. While he only topped his grandfather with a few inches in height, he outweighted him with at least twenty pounds. But the heat was something else though. The old man rarely showed any temper even when Jay had been a troubled teenager who came to live with him. But on those rare occasions that he did, that was when Jay knew he had gone too far and should back off. 

Satisfied that he had gotten his point through, James' features softened. "Now go get yourself cleaned up and rested. I'll see you at dinner."

Knowing that he wouldn't get any further with his grandfather Jay nodded his head in acquisition and resumed his walk towards the main guesthouse, leaving the old man to enjoy his stroll on the wide grounds of Holden Manor. 

If the old man thought the matter was settled however, he was in for a big disappointment. Jay was not about to give up that easily. 

James could deny it all he wanted but Jay knew him better. For a man who loved as dearly as he did, James Arlington never forgot or let go that easily. Especially not something that he had helped to build with his own hands. No the reason he didn't want to claim the company back was because he put another person's feelings ahead of his own. Because he knew how much Holden Inc meant to Madame and he loved her too much to ever want to hurt her like that. So instead he was the one who hurt, by taking on the role of a silent observer even though Jay knew how much he wanted to be part of it all.

__

I'm sorry, Madame. I know I owe you a lot. But I owe Gramps more and if I have to choose between the two of you, well there's not much choice in that. 

Though he had to admit he did regret having to start making his move at a time like this. The death of Marcus was a serious blow to Madame but Jay could not afford to sit back and watch any longer. The loss of the project in London only proved that it was time to act. Whether Madame liked it or not, Holden Inc was heading for a storm and Jay intended to see to it that they emerged from that storm stronger than ever.

~ o ~ 

Dinner at the Holden family seemed to be an endeavor held in silence. Aside from the casual clicking sound of silverware against fine china as the members ate, there was hardly any sound at all. The solemnity in room reminded Rei of a funeral. The fact that everyone, aside from her, was dressed in black only emphasized that feeling for her. It was enough to chase away any appetite that she might have had.

Twirling the silver spoon on the bowl of soup in front of her, Rei cast a studious glance around the table. 

She was seated at one end of the table with the old harridan Louisa facing her. She might have changed for dinner but her mood was just as foul. In fact she spent most of the time complaining about the food making a pest out herself with the poor servants. The soup was too cold, heat it up. It was too warm, cool it down. The vegetable was too hard, how did they expect her to chew on that without breaking her teeth? The food had too much oil in it her doctor specifically told her to stay away from oily things. It was not good for her cholesterol. In the end her sister had tired of her complaints and told her to either shut up and eat or leave the table. The harsh words had stung, one could see it in the flash of her eyes but she got a comforting squeeze to take away hurt from her table partner, Jay who was seated between her and her daughter. 

Trish was pale and silent and seemed to shrink even as Madame snapped. Rei felt sorry for the woman. She seemed not only whipped by her mother but from what she could see not many had high thoughts of her, including her to children. 

Rei moved her eyes further down the table where the twins, Louise and Dean were seated next to each other and sandwiched between their mother and Frederic. They were the same age as Rei but acted at least five years younger. At least Rei felt old when she was around them. Before dinner the two of them had quarreled like teenagers calling each other names that people in their age didn't use anymore. At least that was before Madame had shown up. Then they had both quieted down and turned into robots. 

As if sensing her eyes on them, both looked up and glanced at her. Louise's green eyes were guarded and slightly challenging as if marking her territory. Dean's on the other hand was cocky and a slight smile danced across his lips. Rei looked away and forced herself to hold on to the spoon instead of making a gagging gesture. Great, she had caught the eyes of a hormone driven boy. That is just what she needed. The very fact that he was second cousin of hers made her skin crawl as he felt his eyes roam over her. 

Help came from an unexpected place when she felt a warm hand gently touch her hand. Rei looked up to her left and met the sympathetic blue eyes of James Arlington's. Seated at the short end facing Madame, he looked very much like a patriarch with his silvery mane of hair, well cropped mustache and dark evening suit. 

Without a word, James shifted his eyes towards the end of the table. There was a commanding look in them that impressed Rei and even more so when she actually could feel Dean's eyes lift from hers. When first introduced to James Arlington just before dinner, Rei had been cautious of him, finding his warm attitude and friendly manners quite suspicious after the tenth degree the rest of the household had given her. Some of her questions had been answered when he had asked her to be his dinner partner and led her to the very end of the table farthest away from where Madame was sitting. No doubt the old woman couldn't stand to have Rei too close to her and asked him to do a favor for her. 

If Rei had harbored any doubts about how her father's mother felt about her, the seating arrangement certainly made it clear to her. Flanked by her son's on each side with her daughter in law and niece in law coming up next and Frederic and Terrence's two children taking up the line it was like a seating arrangement that showed the family tree and Rei was obviously the cut off branch. 

In truth Rei hadn't minded the seating arrangement. Even with Louisa's complaints she'd rather sit in the company of the people at this end rather than the other. Especially when she realized that there actually might be a true friendly face around. 

Looking up at the gentleman that had come to her rescue, Rei gave him her first warm smile since she entered the house. She had to admit at first she was taken off guard and then against her will charmed by the wink she received in reply. 

There was a slight commotion to Rei's right. 

"Reggie, eat up your food." Marcia told her son sternly and brought the plate that the boy had pushed aside back in front of him.

"But I do not want to eat, Mama. The food does not taste like anything." The boy complained.

"Hush and eat it up." Marcia reprimanded and began cutting up his food. Her movements were slightly jerky, no doubt from the pressure of having all eyes around the table on them. 

Reggie shook his head stubbornly. "I want to have pizza. You said I could have pizza when I finished my homework on Monday. That was three days ago. I don't want to eat this tasteless food anymore."

"Sweetie, we'll have it another night okay? Be a good boy now and finish your food. It's good for you."

"No, you've been saying that for the past nights. I want pizza now!"

"Pizza wouldn't taste so bad actually compared to this sop." Louisa observed and stabbed at the meat in front of her.

"But what about your cholesterol, mother?" Charmaine, Louisa's younger daughter pointed out dryly from Rei's right. A woman with vibrant red hair that looked positively dyed, Charmaine was the absolute opposite of her sister. Where Trish seemed to be a mouse afraid of her own shadow, Charmaine was vibrant and vivacious. While dressed in traditional black, her dress was anything but conventional with a neckline that showed off a large amount of cleavage and enough gold decked around her to resemble a Christmas tree. 

It seemed all hell has broken loose with Reggie's resistance movement. The silence broke and people started conversing. Marcia, Terrence and Reggie were having a battle of will over Reggie's choice of meal, while Tory gave encouraging cheers from the sidelines. Louisa, Charmaine and Jay were discussing Louisa's diet. Dean and Frederic were talking cars. Dean was giving Frederic an account over his thrilling ride with his friend's new sports car. His twin was talking clothes and beauty tip with Terrence's older daughter Alicia across the table. Martin and Trish were the only one who were silent and kept on eating their dinner though they kept stealing glances at the matriarch by the end of the table. The woman in question kept eating her dinner as if she was oblivious to her whole surrounding. 

"Why aren't you eating my dear?" James inquired softly, keeping his voice low.

Rei glanced up at the man. "It seems I don't have much of an appetite tonight." 

"You aren't feeling well?" Concern laced his voice.

Not wanting to worry him, Rei quickly came up with an excuse. "Oh no, it's not that. I guess I'm just more used to the Eastern kitchen that's all." 

It was only after she had said the last word that she realized just how loud she had spoken. As her luck would have it the conversations around the table had just managed to die out a moment before due to Terrence's loss of temper at his son's defiance. 

Rei slowly turned her face and just as she suspected all eyes except for young Reggie's were fixed on her. The boy in question was too busy hiccupping to notice anything. His dark eyes were slowly watering and pooling as tears gathered and even as he fought valiantly the first escaped him and then another. 

As he began to cry, the attention was once again diverted from Rei. Marcia tried to hush the boy while the others looked on with a mixture of sympathy, resignation and annoyance. The sound Reggie was making grew the more his mother tried to hush the boy and it didn't help matters when the father tried to help. His effort only frightened him even more and the boy's volume increased until it started to hurt the ears. 

"Enough, boy!" Madame's voice cut through the noise like knife, silencing the boy but not stopping the tears. "Marcia, take him upstairs and fix him up." Madame told her daughter in law with a disgusted tone. "If he doesn't want to eat the food that is served on this table then let him starve. That'll make him think twice the next time and perhaps be more grateful of what he has." 

Marcia's lips tightened at the harsh command and instinctively clutched her son closer to her. One look from the old woman though had her lowering her eyes murmuring, "Yes, Madame."

She led her son out of the dining room.

"Now," Madame continued. "if there's anyone else here that has something to say about the food then they're welcome to leave the table. Nobody is forcing you to stay." She pointedly looked at her sister. The woman in question grumbled a sullen response but stayed where she was. 

When those violet eyes turned to her, Rei felt her whole body tensing in response. Anger surged through her like molten lava. Rei shook away the warning hand that James has put on her and slowly set aside the napkin on the table and rose to her feet. She felt all eyes trained on her but the only one she acknowledged was the one who had issued the challenge to her, as she met them stare for stare. 

The rest of the people here might jump at her beck and call but the old woman was about to find out that Rei wasn't about to fall in line. Like Madame has so clearly made it obvious since Rei's arrival here, she was not one of them. 

"If you would excuse me, I find I've lost my appetite." Rei broke the eye contact and turned to the table in general. "It must be the time difference and all. Gentlemen," she inclined her head towards James. "Ladies." She added in a less friendly tone as her eyes met Tory's. 

Then with a last defiant glance at her grandmother, she turned and left the room, feeling strangely enough like she had won the first round.

~ o ~ 

The clock on her night stand told her it was nearing midnight. Yet Rei found herself unable to sleep. She tossed and turned a few more times, trying to find a comforting position but it was impossible. The bed was way too soft. It felt like no matter which way she tossed or turned she would end up in the middle of the bed. She knew it was just a figment of her imagination, but she felt like she was being swallowed up by the mattress, as she sunk further and further while the soft sides crawled up to bury her. 

Frustrated, Rei threw off the covers and rose from the bed. She pulled aside the heavy curtains and was momentarily struck speechless by the sight. Situated at the back of the great mansion, she had view of the stone terrace, the wide steps leading down to the garden and the spectacular ground that stretched what seemed like for miles, bathed in the moonlight. Her eyes were drawn to the small lake where the reflections of the moonlight and stars danced. The tranquility pulled at her. 

Acting on impulse, Rei changed from her night clothes and threw on a pair of hacked off jeans and a sweater. Treading lightly on worn sneakers, Rei snuck through house. Soft light bathed the long hallways, the kind of dim light that gave enough to make it unnecessary to fumble in the dark and not hurt the eyes. The house was quiet as she moved along, but she could see lamplights shining from different rooms telling her that several others were feeling restless. Still she was happy she didn't stumble on to anybody as she moved down the stairs and exited through one of the French doors at the back. It was bad enough that she felt like a thief in the night without having to be actually mistaken for one too.

The night air was cool and caressed her like soothing balm. It smelled crisp and fresh enough to make her inhale deeply in enjoyment. With light steps, Rei trotted towards the lake, cutting across the well managed lawn. She wasn't much of jogger, having always preferred marshal arts as her choice of exercise, but she did enjoy a good run now and then when the mood struck her. And tonight, the exercise added a sense of freedom to her that she quite enjoyed. 

Stopping at the very edge of the lakeside, Rei rested a hand against a thick trunk of oak and surveyed her surrounding.

The lake wasn't large. It was probably one mile to the other end. There wasn't much of a beach either. Tall grass and moss grew close to the edge, tall thick oak trees spread out along the lakeside with a neat measured span that spoke of careful planting rather than the work of nature itself. The sound of washing waves as it splashed against the sides, along with the song of cricket made Rei sigh in peace. Now this was what she called the beauty of nature. Not the well manicured lawn or the planted rose bushes and flowers, or the well kept hedges. This lake, with the tall grasses, the stones, the reflecting moon on the water surface and the star filled sky accompanied by the songs of the cricket. This was true beauty. 

"Quite a night, isn't it?" A voice suddenly said breaking the tranquility of the night and making her climb straight into the air. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. I thought you would notice me any time now." Jay told her sheepishly once her feet were firmly planted on the ground once more. 

He was sitting on the grass with his back leaning against the tree to her right. Dressed in dark clothes he melted enough into the background for Rei to have missed him. A six pack was lying next to him and from the empty bottles lying facedown, Rei could see he had been there for a while.

"Drowning your sorrows?" Rei inquired with an arched brow, ignoring his reference to him scaring her. 

Jay smiled wryly. "If it was my intention to get drunk, Heineken is hardly what I would choose. Not effective enough. No I just wanted some fresh air and decided to enjoy the evening and the beauty here with a cool drink. Want one?" 

Rei hesitated. Her initial suspicions of anything nice coming from any member of this household warred with her basic need for something to drink. The two chocolate bars she had eaten in her room to substitute for the dinner she had left behind, was making itself known. In the end her needs won over her suspicion and she moved closer to take the beer he offered and took a swig. Beer might not be her chosen beverage, being more of a wine person but the coolness against her warm throat was certainly enjoyable. 

Sensing his gaze on her, Rei said grudgingly. "Thanks." 

His lips quirked slightly. "No problem." 

Leaning against the tree facing him, with one leg bent and the sole resting against the rough wooden surface, Rei quietly studied the bottle in her hand. "I don't mean just of the beer but for earlier as well."

"You mean with the grilling?" Jay raised a brow sardonically. "No problem. Besides I figured one funeral for the family is enough. If they had gone any longer you might have been likely to kill them." 

Rei's eyes went blank. "What do you mean by that?" 

Seeing her face, Jay cleared his throat. "Sorry, bad joke. I didn't mean to bring up some bad memories for you."

"You don't know anything about my feelings for my father." She told him evenly and pulled herself upright. Having had to deal with one too many accusations and presumptions of her relationship with her father today, Rei was feeling fed up with it. Suddenly finding the place not as appealing anymore, Rei said. "If you'll excuse me I think I'll retire for the night. Good night Mr. Arlington."

"Wait." 

She ignored him and continued walking, but she had barely taken three steps before he halted her with a hand on her upper arm. Startled at the speed he had shown, Rei kept herself still as she looked up at him. 

"I'm sorry about what I just said. I didn't mean to sound insensitive and pry into your relationship with your father." He gave a sheepish grin but his eyes remained apologetic. "I don't why but it seems whenever I'm with you, you seem to bring out the worse in me."

Rei studied him for a while. His face did look genuinely sincere but she knew a good actor could pull that and something told her Jaycen Arlington was a very good actor. The question was why was he doing it? Maybe she was cynical like her friends sometimes accused her of being, but Rei just didn't believe a man could change his attitude from hostile to friendly as quickly as Jay Arlington unless he had an ulterior motive; men always did. Very well, she would play things his way for now. "Well that makes both of us. I don't often go around picking fights with people either no matter what you have seen."

Recognizing her signal of truce, Jay grinned down at her. 

Rei's pulse jumped, much to her surprise and annoyance. After all she was twenty three years old and there was no reason for her to react like a silly high-school girl just because of a Colgate smile_._

"Well we did start of on a bad note. How about we start afresh? I'll start by apologizing for nearly running you over with my car."

"I suppose I'll have to apologize for hitting your car." She told him grudgingly.

"You mean trying to vandalize it?" He corrected.

Her eyes narrowed in disagreement but seeing the laughter in his eyes, she found herself unable to resist his charm and felt an answering smile tug at the corner of her lips. 

"Let me guess, you love that car?"

"She's my wife. Of course I love Vette."

Rei lifted her brows in incredulous disbelief. "You actually have a name for your car?" 

Not the least of bit ashamed, Jay shrugged. "We all have our little quirks."

"Obviously." Rei commented and tried to put on a straight face. She couldn't wait to tell Mako about this. It seems Nathan wasn't the only boy who lived out his fantasies with his cars.

"So what do you say? Truce?" Jay suggested.

Rei looked down at the hand he was offering her. Strong capable hand and long elegant fingers. She could imagine it wielding a hammer as easily as a pencil and strangely enough both images fit well. An offer of truce from a man who her instincts clearly told her was after something. 

Rei reached out and took his hand. 

Heat seemed to leap up like a flame the moment their hands touched, startling them both. One moment the cool night breeze blew against them and the next they both felt like they had been licked by flames as warmth spread throughout their body. 

Intrigued by the unexpected attraction he felt, Jay decided to test the water by leaning closer. He was more than a little satisfied when he heard she small catch in her throat before she quickly pulled her hand from his grasp and took a step backward. 

"It's getting late. I had better go back before I find myself locked out." 

No, the attraction wasn't just one sided and somehow the knowledge of that pleased him somehow. 

"Sleep well." He told her as she started to walk past. 

She gave him a suspicious look that had him laughing inside. He didn't know why but seeing her disconcerted made him feel even more pleased. She grumbled something in response and headed back towards the mansion. 

Jay couldn't help it, he let out a laugh. He must be insane. But he was actually starting to like that prickly attitude of hers. 

He watched her move with determined strides back to the main house, Jay mused at the sudden turn of events. He had to admit this had not been part of his plans even though he knew Darien had believed it was. The question was what did he do now?

~ o ~ 

From the second floor of the main house another man was watching the raven haired girl move towards the building. His eyes unlike Jay's though were burning dark with obvious dislike. Unconsciously his hand tightened on the whiskey snifter in his hand. 

"Enjoying the view are we?" A voice said from behind with a sneer, grating on his nerves. 

Letting the maroon velvet drapes fall once more over the window, Terrence gave his wife a disgruntled look.

"Shouldn't you be acquiring your prescribed ten hours beauty sleep, _wife_? We wouldn't want you to look bad in front of the reporters tomorrow." He sneered and let his eyes sweep over her in an insulting manner.

She was dressed in a dark blue silk peignoir, her body still exquisite lovely despite having given birth to two children. He supposed with enough money anything can be corrected and lifted. He wasn't surprised to find himself not the least of bit attracted to her even in that scanting dress to which he was sure she had chosen to wear for his sake.

A twisted smile danced on his lips. At first sight one would believe that Marcia Holden was a woman of great beauty and intelligence. But after being married to her for thirty years he knew her well enough now to know that everything was just an illusion. Beauty was something that had been bought with money and intelligence only went so far. When he had been younger he had been lured by that beauty and by that sexy body. He had followed her around like a puppy and given her anything she'd wanted. But he was older now and a lot wiser. What he wanted she would never be able to give him anymore nor did he want it even if it was offered to him. 

"How can I sleep when you keep on prowling around here like an animal in a cage?" Marcia demanded and rose from the bed. 

The moment she reached him, Terrence left and headed for the minibar. He saw her mouth tighten in displeasure and felt a sense of satisfaction. He was even happier when she chose to remain by the window instead of following him. 

As he poured himself another four fingers of whiskey, Terrence eyed his wife from the corner of his eyes. He saw her lift the drapes and scan the grounds. He knew the moment her eyes spotted Rei because those dark eyes turned as hard as granite. She threw back the drapes over the window and whirled around to face him.

"So that's what's been keeping your attention. Enjoying what you saw? Did it bring back some fond memories for you?" She demanded with a loud voice.

Terrence set down his snifter on the table with enough force to crack the glass and it certainly made Marcia flinch. Striding over to her with three quick steps, Terrence grabbed hold of her arm and hissed. "Keep your voice down, woman or do you want to alert Madame about our situation?"

"I doubt that there's anything she doesn't know around here." Marcia retorted but nevertheless she did lower her voice. 

"Whether she knows or not, you and I have an agreement. As long as we are in her presence we act like we are a married couple. Or you can find yourself a good lawyer."

All the blood in her face drained out. "You wouldn't dare!" She hissed. "You need me. As long as I'm married to you, you will get the chance to inherit part of the company shares. Without me you get nothing. That was the deal with Madame." 

"Aye that's true." But not for long. Not if his plans came through. By then his inheritance won't mean anything anymore and he would not need any of them. At the moment though Marcia was right, he still needed her. Not as much as she thought but she could be of some use to him. 

He let go of her arm and was pleased to see her rub herself there to ease the pain though he was careful of not letting it show. "If you must know," he told his wife with a grave voice. "I was wondering what Jay was up to. The two of them were standing by the lake for quite some while talking. They seemed to be getting along very well."

Marcia gave him startled glance before hurrying to the window. With her back to him she didn't see the displeasure in Terrence's face at not being taken for his word. Pulling aside the drapes she let her eyes sweep over the ground, squinting against the darkness and true to his words, she saw the blonde haired tall figure walk with easy steps towards the guesthouse.

"You think he's going to make a move on her?" 

"We always suspected he wouldn't be satisfied with just working for the company. Not when his grandfather used to be one of the owners." Terrence told her and took a lazy swipe of his drink. "It was just a matter of time before he moved in on higher sites after he got promoted to head architect."

"But what would it accomplish to befriend that girl?"

Terrence received a thoughtful expression on his face. "Maybe he knows something we don't."

Marcia waited. Dread spread over her body like the cold fingers of Death. 

"He and Marcus became quite close during the last few months."

Marcia shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. No he couldn't be suggesting that. There was no way Marcus would do that. No way at all he would betray her like that. 

~ o ~ 

Rei strode back inside the house, fuming inside. The target of her anger was the arrogant blond man that she had just left behind, but the source was mainly herself or more to the point her reaction to him. Being hit on by a man was not something new to her. From the moment she hit puberty she had received a lot of attention from the male sex. No what she couldn't understand was why she had become flustered instead of bitch-slapping him to high heaven which was what she normally would have done. She had actually babbled for pity's sake! She hadn't done that since she was ten years old. 

Good thing for him, he hadn't laughed at her. If he had so much as cracked a smile, Rei swore she would have killed him right on the spot. 

Rei let out a mental scream. It was all the Holdens' fault. How was she supposed to be able to keep up her normal indifferent composure towards ardent men when she was both mentally and physically exhausted after half a day of butting head to head with the entire Holden clan? 

And just where the hell was she?

Rei stopped in her tracks and looked around her surrounding. The long hallway looked different from the others she had passed earlier on her way out. Instead of wallpapers, the walls had been plastered with wooden surface with carved panels. No painting or tapestries decorated the walls only lamps which had been left unlit. The only source of light came from the moon, which seeped through the large windows. The smell of flower hung in the air and dashes of orchids could be seen here and there gracing crystal vases, that shone eerily in the darkness. 

Looking down one end of the hallway and then the other, Rei was still not able to jaunt any recollection of having ever passed this way before. 

Great. This was just great. She was lost. More proof that the Holdens were not good for her state of mind. She never got lost. 

Well there was no way to it but to return the same way she had came from. The house couldn't be so big that she wasn't able to stumble back into familiar surroundings sooner or later. Now she only had to pray that she didn't stumble into anyone in the meantime. 

Rei turned and was about to move away when she heard the faint sound of music drifting down the hallway towards her. Cooking her head slightly she strained her ears to listen but the sound was so faint she couldn't pick up on the notes except that it seemed to come from a piano.

Curiosity pricking at her, Rei headed for the direction where the music came from. 

She wondered who the person was who was playing the piano and with such passion. She didn't recognize the music but she was enough of a music lover to acknowledge a beautiful piece when she heard it. The notes were, classical, slightly romantic and hauntingly sorrowful. 

The music stopped abruptly and silence hung heavily in the air. 

Standing in the middle of the hallway with stinging eyes, Rei swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. She hadn't expected to be so moved. It was a beautiful piece and made even more so because of the skill of the player. So engrossed was the player in the task that it felt like the music was an expression of that person's feelings. 

As much as she hated to admit it, Rei was humbled to realize that there was in fact someone in the Holden family who far exceeded her in skills as a pianist. A person who had more passion than her. 

* * *

AN: Hm I wonder who that person could be. ^-^ All the Holden members have been introduced so take your pick. 

Well here's the update. I know I'm a bit late but hey I did manage to finish it before it turned september. ^-^ The chapter also became longer than I first anticipated and the problem with writing long chapter is it takes forever to revise it. Thank God I have a great beta who does that for me or this chapter would most probably be posted near Xmas. CC2, thanks for the help and especially for helping me keep Rei, Rei-like. =) 

My thanks to everyone. To those of you who read this story and especially those who have left me your reviews. Your thoughts and opinion means a lot to me and helps me to improve this story as well as my writing. 

So when is the next chapter coming out? Most probably no sooner than a month. Lately people have been kicking my lazy ass and telling me to stop neglecting Destinies. I came to realize that it has in fact been half year since that story has been updated, (where does the time go?) and my conscience is telling me its time to give it some attention again. Then again I don't decide what story to write my muse does, and she has a worse temperament than Rei. So who knows. I will however be adding a character index soon on this story to help lessen the confusion. Well til next time. 

Cya!

Ps. Wyse, if you're reading this and Zoi-boy is not distracting you too much, then you should probably recognize my inspiration source for Ami's interest. ;) 


	7. A funeral

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and the characters in them don't belong to me. 

**Chapter 7: A funeral **

By Lady Fenix 

_ After having met Marcus' family it became apparently clear to me that our whirlwind romance and thus far rocky free relationship was soon about to meet obstacles. Unlike Marcus, it seemed his family was not as eager to warm up to me. _

Among those I found most difficult to get along with were Terrence and Marcia. Terrence was Marcus' older half brother and Marcia, his wife. While Terrence was the one who was openly rude to me, strangely enough, it was Marcia who made me the most uncomfortable. His attitude never made me warm up to him but at least I could respect him for his honesty. Marcia on the other hand was never openly rude to me, on the contrary in the few times our paths had crossed, the woman had been extremely cordial. But I just can't help to read more into to her harmless remarks, nor can I shake away the feeling that she doesn't like me. Marcus tells me it's just my imagination. Maybe he's right after all he seems to get along well enough with Marcia. And yet I still can't shake away that feeling that there's something that Marcus is not telling me…

Rei studied her own image on the full figured mirror at the corner of bedroom with critical eyes. The black dress she wore was full skirted and long sleeved and would have been too long for her if it weren't for the extra inches her sandals gave her. The dress belonged to Ami. Rei herself had always preferred bold colors in her choice of wardrobe and the only black dress she owned was too inappropriate to wear at a funeral. 

Rei grimaced at the image she made. With her long hair tied back with a black ribbon she looked like a schoolteacher. The style, while feminine, was still practical and conservative enough to remind her of Miss Tanaka, her home teacher back in high school. It didn't help that at the moment her face was just as pale as miss Tanaka's had been. At least she was able to hide the dark rings under her eyes with make up or she might truly have been the woman's twin. 

Sighing Rei cast a glance at the clock. Eight thirty. She knew it was time for her to go downstairs and eat some breakfast with the rest of the household. The funeral was to start at ten and they were supposed to be leaving here at exactly half past nine. Everyone was to go together. 

Idly Rei wondered if she would actually be allowed to go with the rest of the clan or if they would stick her in a car of her own and let her handle herself. After the reception she got yesterday, it wouldn't even surprise her. Well, she would find out sooner or later, she supposed. Taking a deep breath, Rei checked her image one more time, fixing her hair slightly and prepared to face what was no doubt going to be a long and trying day. 

The hallways were quiet but there was a sense of motion that told Rei that somewhere in the great mansion, people were up and about. As she rounded a corner, she quickly came face to face with one of those early risers. 

While she didn't exactly stop in her tracks at the sight of the woman standing by the old mahogany table seeming to be busy arranging the flowers on the vase, Rei did slow down as she contemplated on her next move. Should she walk past and pretend she didn't see the woman or should she stop and greet her? Before she could decide on either move, the woman in question looked up and met Rei's eyes through the mirror reflection. 

Seeing that look, Rei unconsciously stiffened in response. There was a calculated look in those eyes that told her that this was not just a happenstance. The woman had been waiting for her.

"You are an early riser." Marcia observed. "Slept well?"

She quirked one slim brow. 

"Well enough." Rei replied shortly. The reminder of her night dampened her mood considerably. Falling asleep had been a trial, her mind had kept reverting back to the anonymous pianist and trying to figure out that person's identity. When exhaustion finally did claim her, her dreams had been too disturbing to give her any kind of restful sleep. She kept re-experiencing the incident by the lake with the exception instead of leaving the place she kept seeing herself wrapped in Jay's arms and being kissed senseless. The dream had weirded her out enough to make her wake up with a bolt. 

"Yes a little midnight stroll does do wonders for sleep." Marcia agreed and pulled aside one of the roses from the vase. 

There was just the hint of bite in her tone that had Rei's eyes narrowing. "Your point is?"

Marcia threw her an indulgent smile over her shoulders. "Oh come now, we're both women. There's no need to pretend. A midnight stroll, a lakeside view, a handsome man by the moonlight. There's nothing like a romantic setting to set a woman's heart racing and make her start dreaming."

Because the word had hit a bit too close to home, anger rose. "Are you actually suggesting that Mr. Arlington and I are having something going on between us?"

"Well I do have eyes, little one." 

"Well get yourself a pair of glasses." Rei snapped not particularly liking the patronizing tone the other woman was using. "We were just talking."

The smile Marcia bestowed on her was slightly frigid. "Since you are that certain of it then I must commend on your sound judgment."

"Oh really?" Rei said sarcastically.

Marcia gave her a pitying look. "Take it from a woman who has seen Jay grow up. Unlike his gentleman grandfather, he has the heart of steel. He never does something without a reason and once he's achieved his goals he leaves them crying. I've seen it happen often enough."

While Rei had suspected as much, oddly enough having it confirmed by someone else didn't please her as much as she would have thought. Or maybe it was just the fact that the confirmation was coming from this particular woman. The combination of Marcia's treatment of her yesterday along with what Rei knew about her mother's own experience had made her decide that she disliked the woman.   

Deliberately making her voice sound amused and disbelieving, Rei said. "Am I to take it then that you are concerned for my wellbeing?"

Dark eyes hardened with temper and the tone was hard as a rock. "Suit yourself if you won't take the warning to heart. If you want to end up with the same fate as your mother, then by all means."

She turned to leave but Rei reached out and grabbed hold of her arm. "What do you mean by that?" Rei demanded fiercely. 

Marcia took one deliberate look at Rei's arm. The message was clear. Forcing herself to reign in her temper, Rei reluctantly let go of the woman's arm. 

Satisfied, Marcia looked up at her and said. "Your parents' relationship was doomed from the very beginning. They came from two far different backgrounds. There was no way it could have lasted for them. Girls like you grow up reading Cinderella stories and think its going to happen to you too but reality is far more different; as your mother found out. No matter how hard she tried, Sakura could never completely adapt to our world and our way of living. She didn't belong here and neither do you." The last was said with finality in her tone before she swept off, leaving Rei staring at the spot she had just left. 

It took Rei a moment before she gathered enough of her scattered wits to close her hanging jaw with a sound click. Feeling disoriented by the whole conversation, Rei shook her head. All of that just to make her point that she didn't belong here? Here she thought she would have something far more interesting revealed to her as the Marcia's tone had implied. But the woman hadn't revealed anything Rei didn't already know. 

A thoughtful frown marred her delicate face.

Why was Marcia repeating herself? Why was she so adamant to make sure Rei understood that she wasn't welcome here. It was as if she was trying to get rid of her as soon as possible. If Rei didn't better, she would almost say that Marcia was afraid of her. But the thought was just ridiculous. Had she had a closer relationship with her father and not to mention if the rest of the Holden's would even acknowledge her relation to them then the theory might have been more believable.  

No, Rei shook her head mentally. She would just have to accept the fact that her father's relatives were just plain nutcases. The sooner she got this over with, the better for her. Who knew, it could be contagious! Already she was feeling the urge to want to bang her head against the wall and what normal person would ever think about doing that?

Fortunately for her it was still a bit early and it seemed none of the Holdens' were up yet. The staff left her alone and Rei was able to treat herself to a breakfast in peace and quiet. The moment of sanctuary did a lot to restore her equilibrium and mood. 

Afterwards, since there was still some time left, Rei decided to take a tour outside. Slipping out through one of the side doors, she came immediately upon a paved pathway which led in two different directions. The backside of the mansion was to her right and having already seen the place, Rei decided to take the left fork that would lead her towards the main entrance. 

As she walked alongside the path, Rei had to marvel at the care the gardeners seemed to have put into the greenery. Well tended bushes, flowerbeds, lawns and even ivies followed the architecture of the house to make the house look like it was part of the nature rather than a structure built in it. Clearly a lot of thought and heart had been put down into the designing of this place. 

 Recalling that Martin had told her yesterday that this place had been built by the combined effort of Madame, James Arlington and her grandfather Franco, Rei couldn't help but to wonder. It didn't surprise her to find out that James Arlington designed the place. He looked like a man who was passionate and creative enough to sketch a dream like this from thin air. What was harder for her to wrap her mind around was Madame being part of this. The woman was clearly ambitious and capable, or else the company wouldn't have flourished under her directive. But she seemed too controlling, and if Rei had to describe the type of person Madame was she would have pegged her as a fixer and not a dreamer. As for Franco, anything was possible there she supposed. Aside from the fact that he seemed to have been the love of Madame's life and had died tragically in an accident before the birth of his son, Rei had to admit she knew little of the faceless man that was her paternal grandfather. 

It was a pity. If there was one person she might have wanted to get to know better, it would probably have been Franco Gierro. From what she had seen of the house, he had truly been an artist. She could sense the passion he felt for his work in every corner and every detail of the house. It was the legacy of a man of who had truly loved his work and left a part of his soul in the things he created. 

As she rounded a corner, Rei stopped to look at the building that appeared in front of her. From the wide doors she could clearly see that it was the garage and yet half of the building had been built with a second floor that clearly indicated that it was used as a living quarter as well. In a way the place looked like a small miniature of the mansion if slightly disfigured. Strangely enough, Rei found that building a lot more pleasing to the eye than the mansion itself. If one didn't look too closely at the wide garage doors and just focused on the living quarters there was something very charming and almost fairy tale like about the building. She could almost imagine a princess sitting by the windowsill on the second floor framed by the flowers there and waiting for her prince to arrive.  

Curious at how the inside looked like, Rei walked closer and touched the door gently to see if it was locked. The door swung open with a slight creaking sound. She winced and tensed, waiting to see if anyone heard her. Faint sounds drifted out towards her as she heard two voices talking. 

Her first instinct was to turn and leave. Socializing was the last thing she wanted to do but then she heard the tone of voice and the anger in it caught her ears. Curiosity won over and she found herself standing there by the threshold and straining her ears. 

"…you're always like that." A woman spoke up, frustration lacing her voice. "Why can't you just for once just chill out and act like a normal person instead of a mechanical doll who lets an old lady think for him?"

The voice sounded familiar but Rei couldn't put her finger on who's exactly, it belonged to. 

"If you are referring to me not letting you use the Porsche, Miss Louise. I was only acting out for your own best interest. Considering your destination, the red Porsche is not a suitable choice of transportation to use." A calm voice replied. 

Rei's eyebrows nearly disappeared under her bangs. She might not have recognized the earlier voice too easily, but she definitely did this one. The dark voice with the slight hint of Southern drawl was not easy to forget. The last two people she would have imagined conversing with each other were Louise, the vibrant daughter of Trish, and Emmet, the stoic chauffeur who had driven Rei and Marcus from Manhattan to the estate.

"Considering your destination the red Corvette is not a suitable choice of transportation to use." Came the mimicked reply. "Arghhh! Stop talking as if I'm still a child. In case you haven't noticed I'm a woman now. Or maybe you would like to take a closer look?" 

Louise's voice quickly dropped into a husky seductive tone. There was a moment of silence and despite telling herself not to, Rei found herself moving closer to risk a peek around the corner. What she saw there had her blinking her eyes in surprise. 

Among the rows of expensive looking cars, the couple was standing together by a bright red sports car. Emmett, wearing his usual dark uniform was standing completely still in front of the door on the driver's side, his hands kept firmly to his sides. Louise was standing so close she was practically plastered on him as she covered his lean frame with the softer curves of her body. The difference in height was minimal and with her arms wrapped around his neck, their eyes were nearly at the same level and their lips barely an inch apart. Even through the distance, Rei could see the intent gleam on Louise's blue eyes as she leaned closer.

There was a faint sound, Rei didn't catch what was said but there was no mistaking her intent as Louise covered his face with light feathery kisses between each pronounced word. 

"Miss Louise, if you would kindly step back I need to get the limousine out. The service is about to start soon and we would not want to be late." Emmett requested politely as if having a woman as his second skin was nothing out of the ordinary. 

Louise tensed and looked up. Her eyes studied his carefully and whatever she saw must have convinced her that he meant business. The warmth in her eyes disappeared, like frost covering the lake on a winter morning and she loosened her hold on him. 

"Suit yourself." She shrugged and flicked a lock of hair over her shoulder. "It's your loss."

Emmett didn't say anything in reply.

Louise threw him a feline smile before she turned on her heels and sauntered towards the exit. When she reached the threshold, she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "The limo looks a bit dirty. You might want to give it another polish before taking it out. There's going to be plenty of people around today and we wouldn't want any of them to think we hire just about anyone to work as the family chauffeur."

The remark was scathing and reminded Rei very much of a woman who felt insulted because the man she had tried to seduce hadn't reacted to her advances. Rei wondered how Louise would have reacted instead if she knew the truth. 

While Emmett might have appeared to have been indifferent by Louise's seduction, Rei knew better. She had seen the way his fingers had twitched when Louise had leaned close to kiss him and rubbed her body against his. He had looked like a man who had been tempted to bury his hands into those thick curls and taken himself a more proper kiss. He was certainly far too still now for a man who had been very insistent on returning to his work. 

Figuring that Emmett most probably wouldn't like to know that someone had witnessed a private scene like that, Rei snuck quietly back out again. 

She knew it wasn't her place to say anything but she wished she could take Louise aside and give her a good slap. Maybe the violence would jar some sense into her. Acting like that just because the man was doing his job was just plain childish and stupid. Fortunately for Louise Emmett seemed to have more sense, otherwise things might have gotten real bad for her. That of course made Louise's parting remark truly heartless. Rei disliked people who used their position to put other people down. 

"You know, once in a while it would be nice to come upon you when you're not trying to chew rocks." The sudden remark came out of nowhere, startling her enough to scatter her thoughts out of her mind. 

Whipping her head to the right, she met the slightly amused face of Jay Arlington as he leaned negligently against the wall with his arms crossed. 

Gathering her wits fast, Rei shot back. "And once in a while it would be nice to see you when you're not trying to give me a heart attack."

One brow quirked up. "I didn't figure you were the kind of woman who scared that easily."

"I'm not. But you might try once in a while announcing your presence." 

"I thought I was just doing that."

"I meant other than throwing out remarks into thin air." Rei gritted her teeth.

"And miss seeing that lovely scowl on your face." He parried with a glint in his eyes.

Idly, Rei wondered if she could wrap her hand around that neck of his and squeeze the life out of him. "I don't scowl."

"You go around looking at yourself in the mirror?" 

"No, of course not." Rei told him in an affronted tone of voice. 

"Then trust me, honey. You were scowling." He informed her. 

Maybe she could hide his body inside the coffin with her father? "I wouldn't trust you as far as I can throw you." She muttered instead.

"Well obviously someone has woken up on the wrong side of the bed today." Jay observed, either ignoring her last remark or not taking offense to it. With a lithe movement he pushed himself away from the wall and walked over to her. He stopped and bent slightly to peer at her face closely. "You've got dark rings under your eyes. That bad a night, huh?" 

"I've been through worse." Her voice was a bit too sharp. Somehow having him standing this close to her, made her think of the way Louise and Emmett had stood inside the garage and that in turn made her remember her own dreams or more particularly what they had been doing in them. She still couldn't understand how the hell her mind could have conjured up a dream like that. There was nothing to base it on. It would have been one thing if she was attracted to him, but she wasn't. No most probably it was just due to an overworked mind and she was just trying to sort out her thoughts and they all got jumbled up inside. The conversation she had with Mako, the midnight stroll and the piano tune she had heard last night; they were all sources of her dream. Not to mention the man gave of an air of sexuality too. Not that she suspected he did that deliberately; no he was probably the kind of guy who was sexual by nature.  

Mistaking her tone as annoyance at him for mentioning her appearance, Jay shrugged. "Just showing some friendly concern. Anyways I need to get moving or I'm going to be late. You want to hitch a ride with me or go together with the others?" 

Rei glanced at the driveway where two cars were already pulling up. Behind her she could hear the engine come to life, where no doubt Emmett was bringing out his. "Who's riding in what car?"

"No idea. Dean just drove off with Martin. Louisa will most probably ride in one with Trish and Louise. They'll have space for you there if Charmaine is not going with them too. Either that or you can ride with Madame and Gramps. I wouldn't recommend going with Terrence though. The kid is still pissed about yesterday."

Rei would have rather walked barefooted to the church with the ground covered in broken glass than ride with the latter group. Marcia was bad enough, add Terrence and a disgruntled kid that was like taking a ride in Hell. Not that the other two companies were any more appealing. She had had enough listening to Louisa's complaints last night and after the show back there, the granddaughter wasn't exactly a pleasant company either. As for Madame…Well Rei suspected neither one of them would enjoy the others company. 

"I don't see the point in me walking all the way there when there's transportation close by." She said casually trying hard not to sound too eager to avoid the others.  

His face was too smooth but all he said was. "Well in that case, shall we?" Jay nodded towards the garage.

Rei nodded her head regally and together they headed for the garage. They were just about to disappear through the door Rei had just exited from when a voice shouted out towards them, well to Jay at least. 

Halting, Jay turned to look at the person. A girl in a long black coat ran towards them, her shoulder length hair billowing out like a dark mane. 

"What's up, Al?" Jay asked when the girl stopped two feet a way from them. 

Terrence's teenage daughter, Alice, glanced slightly at Rei before focusing her dark eyes on Jay once more. Taking a few deep breaths, she said. "Can I get a ride with you? Reggie's being a pain in the neck again and Dad'll just get mad and yell at him. I don't want to listen to him cry all the way to the church." 

Jay smiled in sympathy. "Sorry, princess. I already offered Rei the ride." 

Resentful eyes swiveled towards her before they were quickly masked. "Well can't she just go with someone else?"

The smile vanished from Jay's eyes. "Don't be rude, Al." He told her.

Heat rose up the girl's cheeks as much out of embarrassment at Rei being a witness to the scene as well as shame at being told off like a kid. "Well she could probably get a ride as easily from someone else." Alice muttered rebelliously. "Come on Jay you're the only one I can go with." She pleaded with her eyes.

Jay glanced over Alice's shoulder where the others were already seated in the cars. Terrence was still standing outside and looking impatiently at his watch. Knowing that the man was nearing the end of his patience, Jay said gently. "Al, if you don't want to go with your parents then ask if Louisa will take you with her. If not then maybe you can ride with Gramps." 

"Aunt Louisa does nothing but lecture me and you know as well as I that Madame will never let me ride with her. She hates children." Alice told him in a hurt tone of voice. Her eyes clearly said Jay was betraying her. 

"Alice. Are you coming or not?" Terrence yelled.

Alice flinched but she kept her feet planted firmly. "Jay, please." She begged. 

Jay gave her a lopsided smile. "Sorry princess."

"Oh, you just don't understand anything!" She yelled at him before turning and storming off. 

They watched her run back to her father's waiting car. The moment she came near the man he grabbed hold of her arm, no doubt telling her off but she resentfully shook his hand away and climbed into the vehicle. Terrence followed and slammed the door with force. 

"Well I'm glad I'm not going in that car." Jay observed glibly. Turning to Rei he said, "Shall we?" 

They took the same car that he drove the first day they met. The sleek car shone like it was still brand new; it even smelled like a new car. But when Jay started the engine and the light came on, Rei could see from the dashboard that it hade acquired quite a lot of mileage. Obviously the man hadn't been kidding when he said he loved his car. The thing looked well tended. 

By the time they got out of the garage and drove out to the driveway, all the other cars were already disappearing through the gates and down the road. The black vehicles added to the sense of bleakness that surrounded the day. The sky was cloudy and dark and it looked like anytime soon it would open up and pour down. It was a true mourning weather.

"Don't mind, Al. She's just going through her rebellious stage right now." Jay suddenly said breaking the silence in the car.

Turning her head so that she was facing him instead of the road, Rei said dryly. "I'm used to it by now. It's hardly any different from the rest of the reception I've gotten so far."

"Give them time. They're just not used to having you around and don't know how to handle the situation. The Holden's have a tendency to act kind of brusque when they face situations like that."

"And by that are you referring to yourself as well?"

His lips quirked sideways. "I'm an Arlington. We tend to take things with a smile on our face."

"I didn't see a lot of that on our first encounter." Rei pointed out.

"You still carrying a grudge? I thought we were past that." Jay tore his eyes off the road to look at her. 

Rei lifted her chin. "I'm not holding a grudge. I'm just stating a fact. You didn't exactly welcome me with open arms in the office. Now would you please keep your eyes on the road? We're heading for a funeral preferably not ours." 

"I thought you changed your mind about suing me." Jay grumbled under his breath, but did as he was told.

"Contrary to the opinion of most people around here, I'm not that fond of money." Rei informed him with steel in her voice.

"I know."

The simple statement had her by surprise. It wasn't so much the words as the tone behind it. He sounded so sure. "I beg your pardon."

He took his eyes off the road and met her eyes steadily. She didn't know what rocked her more, the seriousness in that blue gaze or his words when he said calmly. "I said, I know you're not that kind of person." 

"And what, pray tell, changed your mind that quickly." She made her voice light but somehow she was strangely holding her breath as she waited for his answer.

Jay smiled and turned his attention back to the road. She did sound like a disgruntled child at the moment. He wondered if she realized just how much she resembled her relatives. Though considering that he was sitting behind the wheel right now, it might be best for both of them if he didn't tell her. Like she said, it wasn't their funeral he was driving them towards.

"You showed integrity and honesty from the very first time I met you. You say what's on your mind and you never tried to pretend to be anything but who you are. I have to say that it's quite refreshing. If you say you aren't after the money then I believe you."

 The way he so simply believed her was disconcerting. All her life she had only met a few people who had done that. She didn't know why but it made her glad. Maybe it was because she had been met with nothing but distrust by those who knew her father ever since she arrived in to this place. Having someone who didn't misunderstand her or automatically paint her character black as sin, felt comforting. 

"Well it's good to know someone here at least has eyes." Rei grumbled under her breath. 

Once again Jay's lips curved to the side. "You know what you're problem is?"

"No, but I suppose I'm about to find out."

The smile turned into a grin. "You care too much about what other people think."

"Well sorry for being brought up to considering other people's feelings too." Rei told him sarcastically. 

Jay chuckled. He wondered if the last few hectic weeks at work was starting to take its toll on his mind, because strangely enough he was actually starting to find that prickly tempers of hers endearing. 

"I didn't say you couldn't show consideration to their feelings I just said you shouldn't let them bother you that much. Take me for example. I don't give a damn about what other people think of me. They can say whatever they want but I still do what I like. Trust me, it makes your life much easier that way and you can sleep better at night too."

"It must be wonderful to live a carefree life like that." 

"Mm, you could live that way too if you just wanted to."

Whatever more he was about to say, he never got the chance as his cell phone started to ring. The music was fast beat and it took Rei a moment to recognize is as the tune from Destiny Child's _ "Survivor." _ Somehow she didn't figure he was the kind to like songs like that. It seemed out of character.

Jay groaned, took up the cell from the inner pocket of his jacket and flipped it open. "Yeah, squirt. What do you want?"

Rei's brows rose up in surprise at his tone. 

There was the static sound of someone talking on the other side of the line. Having eavesdropped on one embarrassing conversation earlier today, Rei wasn't too eager to make that mistake twice so she forced herself not to strain her ears to listen to what the other person was saying, though she couldn't do anything about shutting Jay's voice out as well.

"As much as I would love to come to another one of your rescue missions, I would have to decline this time. My car is already full." Jay's tone was awfully dry.

There was a sound that very nearly resembled a whine. After a few more moments, Jay interrupted. "Well too bad for you. Told you to plan ahead and stop doing things in the last minute. The way you've been zipping down the roads lately this was bound to happen to you sooner or later. Be glad they just towed away your car and didn't take your license as well. Just call up a cab to take you to the church and have Emmett send someone to bail out the car later."

Rei wondered who it was he was talking to. Her female instinct told her it was a woman on the other line but it didn't seem to be a lover. His voice lacked a certain intimacy. And yet his eyes were shining and his whole body gave off a warm attitude that spoke of his tender feelings towards whoever it was on the other line.

He was silent for another few moments and then he said. "Well as much as I love to hear you beg, I gotta go now. We've just reached St. Marcus. You had better call up that cab or you're going to be late for the service. See ya."

He disconnected the phone cutting off the protesting sound and turned to Rei. 

"Remember what I said about not caring about what other might say? Now is the time for you to try out that theory."

He nodded towards the road. Following his direction, Rei looked ahead of them and her eyes nearly bulged. 

Appearing ahead of them was the tower-like structure of a church building. High hedges surrounded the place and outside by the entrance were rows and rows of cars and people standing by the road. 

"Who are those people?" 

"That," Jay told her, "is called the press. They are part of the daily life of anyone who is rich and famous. The higher you are in the social ladder and the more well known your name is, the more the press surrounds you. Unfortunately, your father was not only a member of a well known family in this country but also as a Congressman and add the tragic way he died well those three combinations draws the interest of the press like vultures to carcass."

Rei didn't know whether or not to be shocked by Jay's tone of voice. Despite his choice of words, there was an indifference to his tone that spoke of his acceptance of this as if it was nothing out of the ordinary. Didn't he see something wrong with the fact that they were attending a funeral? What happened to giving the close family some respect to mourn in quiet peace? This looked more like a circus. 

As if sensing their prey approaching the people gathered around the gates started to stir the moment the car came closer. Even though there were cars both in front and behind them waiting to be let into the cemetery, Rei got the impression that they received more attention than the other cars. The moment they were close enough, flashlights exploded around them and comments flew. Rei caught enough to realize that the press had identified Jay. A few bold ones even threw questions at them. Jay gave a few of them a curt nod acknowledging their presence but he refrained from saying anything as he drove past them. 

By the time they reached the courtyard outside the church, Rei's eyes were still covered with blind spots from all the flashlights. 

"Don't worry. Your eyesight will come back in a while, it's not permanent damage." Jay murmured softly as he went around and opened the door for her.

Reaching out more out of instinct than sight, Rei took his offered hand and allowed him to help her out of the car. "For their sake, they'd better hope so." Rei grumbled under her breath and blinked her eyes blindly.

Jay chuckled lightly.

They didn't get the chance to talk more either as some of the guests gathered outside spotted Jay and called out to him. 

For the next ten minutes, Rei was introduced to a score of strangers half that she didn't even see due to spots that still seemed to cover her eyesight and half whom she would never be able to recognize in all that haste. The only thing they had in common were the sympathetic features in their eyes as they gave her their condolences. Many also wore startled looks and threw a quick glance towards Madame, who was conferring with the priest, while Rei was introduced to them. 

 There were only two whom made any lasting impression on Rei and those were Artur Kent and his niece Serena Kent.

Artur was an elderly man, slightly short and portly in size. He had a pair of bright blue eyes that were framed by small round glasses and a quickly receding hairline that made the top of head glow. It was not a face a person forgot easily and from the moment Rei spotted him she remembered having seen him before. Her father had brought the man along in one of his rare visits to see her outside of her birthday. She recalled that her father had introduced him as his lawyer and there to help him out with a sensitive project that the US and Japan was doing. Like the last time they met, Artur acted very polite and also slightly absentminded. He patted her hand like a caring elderly uncle and told her not to grieve too much since death was something that came to everyone sooner or later but his eyes kept scanning the crowd as if he was looking for someone. 

Aside from her short appearance and blue eyes Serena Kent didn't show any kind of family resemblance to Artur at all. Her hair was pale blonde almost silver in coloring and it clashed strongly against the black dress she was wearing. What made such a strong impression on Rei was the innocence and sincerity that surrounded her. She seemed so pure and so youthful that it reminded Rei of a child though her feminine figure clearly said she wasn't. Unlike the others who clasped Rei's hand or told her how sorry they were about Rei's loss, Rei could feel the sincerity in Serena's voice. Of all the condolences she received, Serena's was the only one who managed to pierce the armor Rei had created around her heart and make her feel some of that pain she had buried.

Fortunately for Rei, Serena Kent was the last person she was introduced to before Jay led her to her seat among the front rows that had been reserved for the family, and she got the chance to be by herself for a while. There was something about meeting Serena Kent that had her finally realizing just exactly what was occurring right now. Things had been happening so fast lately and her senses had been bombarded the whole time for her to truly take the time to wrap her mind around the ugly truth. And that was that her father was dead and this was the last time she was ever going to see him again.

Rei's eyes drifted to the open casket and stared at the man that was lying there sleeping peacefully. According to Martin, who had talked to the doctor, his death had been clean and swift. His neck broke the moment the plane crashed into the sea and he never had the chance to experience the horror as some of the others did, namely drowning to death. That was at least something to be grateful of, though she doubted the experience of riding a plane as it plunged from the air was more enjoyable. She had seen the results of living through an experience like that on Mako's face. At least her father hadn't had to experience both. 

The priest didn't touch upon his death though. In fact he focused most of the service on the subject of life. How it was a gift given by God and should be experienced to the fullest. Instead of mourning the loss one should focus on the good things the departed had accomplished before they left the world of the living. 

As Rei listened to the priest's words her mind couldn't but think about another funeral that she had attended a long time ago. It had been a quiet ceremony with only a handful of people. Most of those attending had worn the traditional white Shinto robes, even Rei, though she had not officially begun her training as a miko at that time. The air was filled with the prayers of the priests along with the smell of burning koden. Even with the lack of people attending, the sorrow in the air had been more poignant, the mourning more intense. It was as if the very air was crying. Nobody had spoken up, not even her grandfather, even though as the head Shinto priest he was presiding over the funeral. Even at that age, her sensitivity had been sharp and Rei had felt his pain. It had been a mirror of her own. The emotion had been too much and she cried, and cried even harder when he held her close trying to comfort her even as a part of him was dying inside. They had stood together as they watched the others build Sakura's shrine underneath the crown of the very tree she was named after. Two lost souls holding on to each other, seeking comfort in the other's presence. 

And now here she was again, attending yet another one of her parent's funeral. A lot of things were different however. Not only the environment and the ceremony itself but how she felt. Rei wanted to believe the reason why she wasn't crying now was because she was older and more in control of her feelings. Public display of her emotions was not something for her. But she knew that wasn't the entire truth. She didn't cry because to tell the truth she wasn't hurting as much. The pain she felt the time of her mother's funeral had been sharp, like slashing knives in the regions of her heart. What she felt now was only a dull aching pain. It was sorrow and pity for a life that had ended early. Not anger or pain for a father she had lost. She didn't know if that made her a bad person. It certainly didn't make her a good daughter; she would give Marcia credit for that. But to Rei, she lost her father a long time ago, even before she lost her mother. 

Listening to Martin and the others talk about her father, Rei realized that she did indeed not know him. The glowing picture they painted of a man who had dedicated his life into helping others and making this country and the world a better place to live in, wasn't someone she could have connected to the distant man she knew. The passion, the loyalty and the kindness, they were things she never got to see or experience. In her mind the only thing she could recall was the image of those wide shoulders and the straight back as he left her at the grounds of her grandfather's temple and walked away from her towards his waiting car. 

The ceremony ended. Those attending started to move, to follow as a handful of Marcus' male relatives and close friends lifted the coffin and carried him down the aisle towards the waiting car that would take them to his burial ground. 

As Rei followed the silent train of people, she wondered if the estrangement between her and Marcus could have been her fault as well as his. She had spent most of her time being angry at him for his lack of attention that she never really tried to get to know him either. If either of them had tried harder would it have made any difference? Did they rob themselves of a wonderful time together because of their pride and refusal to be the first one to bend and give in to the other? 

They stopped at the burial grounds. Hundreds of flowers, white gardenias, pale orchids, delicate roses and even snowy white casablancas had been planted around the hole in the ground. The priest read a small prayer and a blessing for the departed soul. White tissues, small handkerchiefs could be seen here and there as the women, mostly Holden women, discreetly wiped away their tears. Rei and Madame were the only two who stared ahead with their eyes dry and faces unreadable. Even Reggie had his face buried in mother's waist, his small fingers clutching her clothes so hard his knuckles turned white. 

The priest finished his sermon and closed his bible with a finality. The mourners shifted and moved. One by one they approached the coffin and laid a single flower on the topside of the coffin before turning to leave. Rei stood where she was. Her eyes stayed on the coffin, the violet depths shrouded and unreadable. Someone, she thought it was Jay but she couldn't be sure, gave her arm a light squeeze before moving away. The crowd thinned until there was only her and the gravediggers left. 

The coffin lowered slowly into the hole. The first spade of earth was shoveled into the hole, the dirt cascading down like brown rain covering the top of the shiny mahogany surface. It was like a final sign. The sign that showed the ending of another chapter of her life. 

Rei stirred as if wakening up from a long dream. Looking around she bent down and plucked the stem of a delicate blooming Casablanca lily from the bouquets lying on the ground. Casablanca, it was her favorite flower and it had also been her mother's and maybe, just maybe Marcus had held a fondness for them too since they were here today. It made her feel slightly better to know that whatever might have gone wrong at least the three of them could share that. 

_ I guess we will never know if you and I could have patched things up. _

She threw the lily into the hole. It sailed down and landed gently in the middle. A single white flower in the mist of brown earth. 

Goodbye, father.

For the first and last time in her life, Rei was the one to walk away from her father.

~ o ~ 

Jay moved through the throng of people on their way to their cars. His six feet gave him the advantage of looking over many people's head in search for the person, for his target. As he had suspected he spotted the black haired man standing close to a tiny woman with a crown of pale blonde hair. 

His friend was becoming too predictable. If Serena was around, you couldn't find Darien any further than two feet away from her. He knew his friend had caught the L-word bad but this was way beyond that, this was sick. If Jay didn't find a way to cure him soon he was going to have to stay away from him. Staying close to a lovesick puppy was bad for a confirmed bachelor's image. The women around him would start getting the wrong idea. Already those close to Serena were eyeing him in a cagey kind of way that has his instincts giving off alarm bells and telling him to run the other way as fast as he could.

The couple was walking hand in hand, heading for Darien's car. Jay had to push his away through the crowd to reach them before they entered the car. He had initially wanted to talk to his friend before the funeral and ask him about his London mission but the guy had arrived late, entering hurriedly nearing the end of the sermon together with Mina and there hadn't been any chance of that. 

Wryly, Jay had to admit that despite Mina's lousy luck with cops, she always did have a knack in finding a guy to do what she wanted. Jay had been so sure she was going to miss the whole thing. The thought of Madame giving her a little showdown had been very appealing to Jay. It might make her rethink this stupid notion of becoming an actress. There were so many things she could do, why the Hell did she want to become an actress?

Unfortunately he had too many things on his mind right now to deal with Mina's current obsession. Hopefully she would realize her mistake in time and focus her energy on something more practical. 

"Dare!" 

Darien looked over his shoulder and nodded his head when Jay came up to them. 

"You got a moment?" Jay asked.

Darien gave Serena a look. She glanced at Jay and back again to Darien and gave him one of her serene smiles. "I'll drive back to the mansion. Why don't you go with Jay? That way the two of you can talk in private."

Darien gave her one of his rare smiles. The tenderness in his eyes was a true evidence of his feelings for her. "I'll see you soon." He told her and gave her a swift hard kiss on the mouth. 

Jay couldn't quite help to keep the amusement away from his eyes. It was apparent that the whole abstinence thing was becoming more and more frustrating for his friend. 

"See you later, angel." Jay told the blushing Serena and headed for his car. 

"So where's your date?" Darien asked curiously and looked around as he fell into step with Jay. 

"Who?" 

"You know, Marcus' daughter." He gave Jay a sidelong glance. "I spotted the two of you sitting together at the church. And you had been inseparable ever since."

"I gave her a lift from the house. Just seemed the right thing to do to keep her company later on. Especially since the others are ignoring her." Jay told his friend. He didn't add that he had felt the need to stay by her side the whole time to make sure she was alright. The strange protectiveness he felt for her was not something he wanted to delve too much into. Especially if he intended to go through with his plans: plans that might include him having to hurt her. 

"So the freezing out thing has started, huh." Darien murmured. 

It was not a completely alien experience for either of them. Jay had experienced it first when his grandfather first brought him and Mina to live at the Holden's guesthouse. Darien got a shot of that too when he started hanging out with Jay. The Holdens had a tendency to be very suspicious of outsiders before they warmed up to them. 

"Then why aren't you with her now? How's she going to get back?"

"I asked Artur to give her a ride. He's coming to the house anyhow."

"He's going to read the will this soon?" Darien's brow shot up in surprise as his head swiveled to his friend's. 

They reached Jay's car and climbed in. Jay took his time to maneuver them out of the crowd before he answered him. "I got the impression that it was part of Marcus's will." He didn't say anything more but having known him for years, Darien knew how to read things without having him voice it. 

"There's more to it than that, isn't there?"

By this time they had cleared the burial grounds and come out to the countryside. The side road was empty. Still Jay cast a sidelong glance at the mirrors. 

"Artur was edgy and very absentminded. Even more so than ordinary." He added while he switched on the radio. Music blasted through the speakers with enough volume to have him wincing and Darien clutching his ears in pain. 

"Sorry." Jay muttered and hurriedly lowered the volume. He changed the hard rock music for something softer; something that went with the occasion. Soon the soulful bittersweet tune of saxophone started playing in the background. He always did prefer to drive his car with music on even if he wasn't really listening to it, there was something about having that sound in the background that felt soothing. 

"Anyways as I was saying, something tells me that Artur is behaving this way because of something in Marcus's will."

"You mean something that even we didn't predict?" 

Jay brushed back the lock of hair that had fallen over his eyes with an absentminded gesture. Maybe it was time for him to get a haircut. This was getting annoying. 

"I don't know yet. We'll find out later once they read it, won't we? If they come out of the study looking like thunderclouds then things are still going as planned. Otherwise… Well we'll just cross that bridge when we get there."

Darien shook his head. "You gotta have balls of steel. If I had so much riding on this, I wouldn't be able to be this relaxed."

"The women haven't complained so far." Jay told him dryly and then in a more sober tone he added. "There's no sense in worrying about things I can't have control over. I'd rather gather as much as I can about things that I can do something about. So tell me how did things go in London?"

"It's like we suspected. It seems Steel had seen Sarah Bryde the night before the meeting in Rome. My guess is he slipped the offer to her there. As for the leak, I have haven't pinpointed it yet. I narrowed it down to three people though: Farshaw, Lex and Winslow." 

Darien stopped to take a break and continued.

 "Farshaw and Lex worked closely together on this project. Any one of them could have access to the information. But we both know lately Winslow probably knows as much as Lex since the latter can't manage things without his help anymore. If he wants to get at the information it wouldn't be that hard. Plus as a background figure suspicions wouldn't fall on him as easily." 

Jay was silent for a moment. "What projects have they've been involved in before this?"

Darien named a few. Both thought the same thing. There were two other project names that they had lost to Tridell. 

"They didn't work with the key roles. They wouldn't have access to the necessary information." Darien pointed out.

"No but they might know someone who has. Holden Inc never does large project like that relying on just one person. This means for them to gain the information there's more than just one leak, either that or someone who's sitting very high in management."

A heavy silence filled the car. 

Jay's eyes were focused on the road but he could feel his friend staring at him in disbelief. "The only one high enough are the immediate family. You're not saying…"His voice died out, he shook his head. "No. They wouldn't."

"If I can think about rebelling then why not one of them?" Jay pointed out. "It's no secret that Madame's feelings for Terrence had never been any warmer than tepid. Every time she sees him she thinks of his father. The guy is bound to be sick of that sooner or later. Actually I'm surprised he lasted this long." 

The ambiguity of Madame's character had always stumped him. The woman could be very generous, caring and forgiving, yet at the same time she could be vindictive and narrow minded. Jay wasn't sure what Edward Hamilton had done to Madame but it must have been something very bad to have her treating the son the way she did. Anybody with eyes could see that of all three sons, Terrence was the least favorite and Marcus the favorite. Just like the husbands. 

"I admit Martin is a bit of a wild guess, having been under her thumb for that long but heck people can surprise you. Now Frederic on the other hand, he wouldn't surprise me at all. That guy has always been ambitious."

"She's their mother and aunt." Darien pointed out. 

Jay shrugged. "Since when has that stopped people from trying to achieve their goals? Ask Serena she should know that."

At the mention of his fiancée Darien's mouth turned grim.

Serena was the perfect example of what a person was willing to do for power and money. Richard Jennings, Serena's uncle on her mother's side, had worked at Holden Inc as one of Madame's most trusted advisors. Greed had made him think he could take over the company and when the coup had failed, mainly due to his sister's and brother-in-law's interference, he had made one desperate act that had ended in tragedy. Kidnapping baby Serena in hope of ransoming for money, the result ended with a big explosion that cost both Kents' life along with his own and Fred's father's.  

"Alright so you made your point." Darien flexed his shoulder, trying to get the stiffness out of it. His body had still not recovered yet from the speedy flight back from London and the straight drive from the airport to the church. "What do we do now?"

"Keep following those leads. See if you can find any connection between them and any other high personnel in the company. Trace their money, their calls, have them followed if you have to. I want to know who they see, who they talk to and who they sleep with. I'm going to work on my own contacts and see if they can find anything from within Tridell. I'm especially curious about this Kenneth Steel that Tridell has hired. From what I could find out he seems to be a wiz guy. Dabbles in everything and has the hand of Midas. Everything he touches turns into a fountain of gold. He was last hired to save Kelsey's from bankruptcy and not only did he manage that, he turned the whole chain into one of the country's most successful department stores in less than two years."

"Well I can tell you is he seems to be a real ladies man too. Sarah Bryde is completely head over heels for him. She keeps a photo of him in her drawers together with her undies."

Jay cast his friend a suspicious look. "And how would you know?"

Darien shrugged. "Called up an old friend. The two of us went on a little adventuring tour in the night."

"Are we turning into burglars these days? And an official's home to boot, you sure have a funny way of dealing with sexual tension." Jay commented. 

"Don't even go there." Darien growled. That joke was not even the slightest bit funny anymore. If he wasn't also sitting in the car, Darien would have cheerfully knocked his friend out cold.

Jay as if reading his mind hurriedly said. "Okay, okay. Jeesh, chill out, its only one more month to go and then you will be out of your misery."

He stopped the car at the curving driveway right in front of the main entrance. On queue the moment he shut of the engine, Bentley opened the door and stepped out to the porch. 

"Keep talking like that I'll find myself another best man." Darien got out of the car and slammed the door behind him.

Jay couldn't keep back the instinctive wince at the act even though he knew his friend was waiting to see it. "And miss out on the wonderful bachelor party I have arranged for you?" He called after his friend with a gleam in his eyes. 

The two of them jogged up the steps and as routine, Jay threw his car keys to Bentley who fished them up in the air. 

"Master Jay, Master Darien. Madame would like to see the both of you in the study." Bentley called after their retreating backs as they disappeared inside. 

Both men shared a meaningful look and headed immediately for the study. 

"Good. I figured the two of you would arrive together." Madame said the moment they entered the room. She was standing by the window with her back to them studying the sky, her pose very much like the one Jay had used yesterday at that very spot.

"So what did you find out?" Madame asked after Darien had closed the door behind them. She took a seat by one of the two deep chairs by the window, its high back made it almost seem like a throne, and added to the image of her holding court. 

While Darien took a seat on the opposite chair facing hers and started giving her the same information he had told Jay earlier (with some glossed out facts), Jay settled to lean against the mantle piece with his favorite pose namely his arms and ankles crossed. Madame listened the whole time without interrupting. In fact her face was completely unreadable as she digested the news and the possibilities that two of her most trusted employees could be betraying her. 

"I've asked Rich to stay behind in London under the disguise of helping the others out. Bryson especially seems to feel a bit bad about the whole incident and he wanted to see if Holden will consider taking on some other project. Nothing in the league of the Thames-project though." Darien gave a faint lopsided smile. "It seemed to lift the spirits of our people over there."

Madame merely grunted at the news. In her opinion if the project wasn't large or prestigious enough, prestigious as in lots of media focus, then it wasn't worth the time or effort of Holden Inc. 

Knowing this, Jay still couldn't keep himself from pointing out, "The fruits of the labor might not be harvested now but who knows what will happen in a few years."

 As expected Madame's lips pursed in displeasure. "I've told you before, Holden Inc. has a reputation of being stable and only working on the best constructing projects. That is how we have remained a stable company with a good demand on our stocks. I'm not about to start gambling on these risky projects that you deem might have potentiality later. Can you imagine the scream the rest of the stockowners will give? The share prices will drop like lead. Just stick to designing the things our customers want and leave the running of the business to me." 

"The company has reached a state of non-growth." Jay informed her coolly, resenting the lecturing tone she used. Just because he was good at designing didn't mean he couldn't do anything else. The company was as much part of his life as any other members, if not more. Unlike Frederic, Jay had actually worked in all parts of the business branches including the construction sites and the janitor's office. James had believed in giving Jay a thorough education so that he would have the intimate knowledge of all aspects as well as appreciate the work others did. 

"Keeping the turnover at twenty billion is not something to scoff at. It still makes us one of the largest companies in the world." 

Fine if she wanted to talk numbers then he'd give her numbers. "Turnover is not the only thing that decides the wellbeing of a company. Our market shares have gone from thirty percent down to twenty five in the past three years. Not to mention our earnings per share has decreased over the last two years. Holden Inc has turned from being a coveted stock that has a lot of trade each day into one of those that old ladies keep in their portfolio."

If she was impressed by his knowledge of the numbers, she certainly didn't show it as she regarded him with cool violet eyes. "And what's wrong with having old ladies own Holden' stocks? I'd rather have them then a bunch of young Wall Street pups straight from prep school playing around with my stocks."

It was amazing how, despite the fact that over thirty percent of Holden stocks were floating in the stock market as merchandise that just about anybody could buy, Madame could still view everything as hers. 

"The company needs to start taking chances or we'll never be able to beat companies like Tridell. This is just the beginning."

"Nonsense." Madame waved his warning off like an annoying fly. "They might have managed to snatch a few of our projects and turned into a thorn in our side but they'll hardly give us that much trouble. I'll deal with them like I've dealt with those before them."

Jay opened his mouth and was about to point out that things have changed over the years. Business dealings these days were not done the same anymore but he was interrupted by a knock on the door. 

"Enter." 

At the curt command given by Madame the knock opened and Serena peeked through with her ever present sunny face. "Are you three talking business again?" She demanded in an accusatory tone of voice.

"We were just about to finish. Were you looking for me or your sweetheart?"

Darien cast Jay a pained look at the endearment but got no sympathy from him. Instead of voicing his own opinion his friend had taken the coward's way out by remaining silent and pretending to study the scenery outside and Jay felt it was only fair that he returned the favor.

"Oh no," Serena shook her head adamantly and cast a look at fiancé. Seeing the pained expression she blushed slightly in response before focusing on Madame again. "I was looking for you, Madame. Uncle Artur wanted me to inform you that the meeting should be ready to take place at your requested time and that nearly all involved parties have been informed to be present. Jay, you are to attend to."

It was news to him. When Marcus had gathered the family, on the day he had his will written five years ago, James had been the only non Holden of those gathered. Jay wondered if Marcus had made any more changes. He certainly hoped so. 

He cast a look at Madame and saw something flicker in those violet eyes, something emotional and strong before the same unreadable mask went up, but it was enough to make Jay feel like a lowlife for having that argument with her earlier. Today was after all the day she buried her beloved son, despite her collected appearance, the emotion in those eyes had revealed her pain and what she must have felt all along. Yet to continue on like this, Jay had to salute to her. Madame Holden was indeed a very strong woman. 

While both Jay and Darien were clueless what to do to cover the obvious awkward moment, Serena on the other hand was not as helpless. 

"Oh Madame." With her large cerulean eyes overflowing with tears, she ran across the room and fell down to her knees in front of the old lady, embracing her in her arms.

Madame had turned quite still at the sudden impulsive and blatant show of emotion. But then a wistful smile crossed her face and she slowly lifted a hand to stroke against Serena's silver head. Her touch was gentle and had both Darien and Jay looking away in a mixture of discomfort and longing. It had reminded them too much of a private moment between a mother soothing her child and neither of them had ever had the luxury to experience much of that. 

After a moment Serena drew back and started to gather herself. "I'm sorry. Here I am supposedly to help you and instead I start blubbering all over you." She brushed away her tears with one hand even as she tried to brush away the tears that stained Madame's clothes. "I'm told myself I wouldn't do this. I was supposed to be helping you and instead you end up having to comfort me." 

She sniffed in between and tried in vain to dry her herself up with her hand until Darien discreetly handed her his handkerchief. She gave him a grateful smile. Both Jay and Madame watched with amusement as the formerly confirmed bachelor melted like butter under the bright sun of her smile.

Turning back to Madame with a sincere look of concern, Serena asked. "Is there anything that I can do for you Madame? Anything I can help with?"

Madame waved a hand in a dismissing gesture. "Nay, child. Everything is taken care of." 

"Would you like me to stay and keep you company? I'm sure Uncle Artur won't mind if I stayed for a few days."

"Don't try to cuddle me, child." Madam warned with displeasure. "You possess more brains than those of my blood and I get enough of that from them." 

"They are just worried about you." Having heard that comment before, Serena merely patted Madame's hand. "You could try not to be so harsh on them and just let them show you once in a while that they care." 

Madame gave a bark of laughter. "Hah, don't delude yourself, child. The only thing they care about is my money. If I was to turn poor as church mouse tomorrow then we'll see how many of them still hang around."

The frown marring the younger woman's forehead clearly said that she didn't agree with Madame. It was one of the things that made Serena into the special person she was, her rare innocent personality and unwavering belief in the goodness in everyone. No matter how bad the person was she could always find something good about that person. She had a soothing effect on people around her and Jay strongly suspected it was also what drew people to her and made her so well liked among her peers. She reminded them of the innocence they lost a long time ago and made them want to explore their softer side. 

Even Madame was not immune to Serena's charms as it was obvious for everyone to see. Serena was the only one who was able to interrupt business and live to tell about it. Had it been anyone else knocking on this door right now Madame would have flayed that person's skin off. She showed Serena patience where she would no other and she indulged her in a way that she did none other than Marcus.

"Enough of about me, tell me how are the weddings plans going? Have you decided on a date yet?" Madame looked at the couple.

"Yes."

"No."

Jay held back a smile while Madame looked at both with a slightly puzzled gaze. Darien wore a slight scowl on his face that turned darker when his fiancée grimaced at him. "Well which is it then?" She demanded when neither spoke up. "Have you or haven't you decided on a date?"

They both remained silent. Serena however was wearing a blatantly guilty look on her face that was making Madame decidedly suspicious.

"Serena."

"Well…" Serena fidgeted with her hand, a bad habit that she and a clear indication that she was trying to stall and come up with an explanation that was not quite a lie but not the truth either.

"Spill it out, child." 

The command had the blonde woman jerking up like a soldier and talking. "Well at first we decided on the first of July but then with everything going around we thought we should postpone it a bit." Her voice died out in the end and she gave Madame a helpless look.

"Nonsense child, whatever would you want to do that for?"

Serena spread her arms. A very energetic woman, she rarely spoke without moving her body in some way. "It didn't seem like it was appropriate to start celebrating a wedding so soon after this."

"And what do you feel about this, Darien?"

Darien glanced at Serena's pleading eyes but knew that he couldn't lie to Madame. "I don't agree."

"Oh really?"

He met her stare for stare. The way the muscle at his jaw ticked slightly was a clear indication of temper brewing even despite the coolness of his eyes. "I don't see how postponing our wedding is going to change reality. The fact is Marcus is dead and there's nothing that either one of us can do that can reverse that. A wedding is just as much part of life as a funeral. We shouldn't put our lives on hold just because he died. He wouldn't have wanted that."

There was a long heavy moment of silence. Jay studied Madame interestedly trying to read her reaction to Darien's words. Serena fidgeted with her hands even more fearing the damage Darien might have done. She loved the old lady dearly and viewed her as the mother she never got to know. Having the two most important people in her life facing of like that was pure hell for her. Fortunately her moment of discomfort didn't stay long. 

"You're damn right he wouldn't." Turning to Serena Madame said. "You made a good choice here."

Serena blushed prettily at the compliment. "I know." She added shyly. The two lovebirds shared a look that made Jay's stomach roll and his teeth ache.

"So tell me more about the wedding plans. Have you decided on where to have it? St Patrick's would be the best choice."

For the next half hour Jay was treated to the intimate details of planning a wedding. Many times he felt like making his excuse and leave but one quelling look from Madame had him staying obediently at his place. 

He never knew there were so many things involved in a wedding. He always figured it just a matter of attending the ceremony say your vows in front of the priest and off to the honeymoon. Listening to Serena prattle about the details was making his head hurt. He couldn't believe he was suffering alone since he was damn sure neither Darien nor Madame liked those frilly things and yet strangely enough neither interrupted nor told her to stop. Instead one was giving her supporting nods while the other squeezed her hand and encouraging her to continue. 

Jay was just reaching the point when he was playing with the idea of killing himself when Serena suddenly remembered something she had to show Madame and dashed out of the room. Despite his fondness for her, Jay admitted he had never been gladder to see a person leave.

 He was just about to make a dash for the door himself when something Madame said caught his interest and made him linger. 

"I hope you realize what kind of treasure you have there. If you do anything to hurt her, I'll make you regret it for the rest of your life." The old lady was looking pointedly at Darien who in turn was looking back at her with stormy blue eyes. 

"Your warning is duly noted but completely unnecessary. I love her and the last thing I would go out to do is hurt her." Darien told her tightly. 

Jay figured now was probably not to the time to point of to his friend that by helping him to snatch the company from Madame's hold might indirectly not please Serena considering her feelings for the old lady. Ever since they were children Darien was always the one who knew what he was doing. 

Madame grunted. "See to it that you it that you keep your word. Now off you go both of you, it's hard enough getting some privacy around here." She waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. 

Jay gave her a parting nod with his head before following his tightlipped friend through the door. He reached out a hand to give his friend a friendly clap on the shoulder. The rigidity there told him Darien was holding his temper by a thin thread. 

"You know how protective she can be of Rena considering what happened to Rena's parents. And considering your track record well that warning wasn't exactly unexpected."

"I know that." Darien snarled. "It still doesn't give her the right to question me or my feelings for Serena."

Jay held up both his hands in a motion for peace. Silence, he decided might be the wisest thing right now. 

~ o ~ 

In another part of the house Rei was looking for some peace and quiet too. The ride back from the cemetery with Artur Kent had been trying on her patience. She didn't understand considering how absentminded he was, how he could actually work as a lawyer. Trying to follow his speech was like walking into a maze, he jumped from one topic to another without the least bit of connection between them. To save herself a headache Rei had closed off his voice until it was nothing but a buzzing sound in the background. Since he was holding more or less a monotone dialogue it was enough that she gave a few commenting sounds at the appropriate places to make it seem as if she was listening. 

Rei was just about to use one of the backstairs to head to her room when the sound of Louisa's voice stopped her. It was the harshness that drew her. Rounding the corner, Rei found Louisa berating her daughter, raking her with her sharp criticizing tongue up one side and down the other. 

Rei eyebrows rose when she heard the woman describe her daughter's behavior at the funeral as embarrassing and scandalous. From what she recalled the only thing that Trish had done there was cry loudly, there was hardly anything scandalous about that. 

The admirable thing was how Trish took all her criticism without even retorting back once. If it had been Rei, she would have snapped a long time ago. Even if the person had good reason, which Louisa didn't even have, Rei would never tolerate anyone talking to her that way. Was the old woman even aware of what she was doing to her daughter? Couldn't she see the hurt in those blue eyes?

Out of consideration for Trish, Rei waited until the other woman had disappeared to freshen up before she stepped out and revealed her presence. 

Louisa gave a visible start at her sudden appearance but recovered quickly and barked. "What do you want?"

Ignoring her rude tone, Rei asked her. "Why are you so harsh on her?" She nodded towards the direction where Trish had disappeared. "She seems like the perfect daughter and yet you do nothing but criticize her all the time."

Louisa inhaled strongly and drew herself up erect so that with her added height she could look down on Rei. "My relationship with my daughter is hardly any concern for anyone, especially strangers." She told her in a tone that clearly said it was the end of discussion. 

"You can't tell me that I'm the only who has actually found this henpecking attitude weird." 

From the way Louisa suck in her breath it was quite clear that she had not expected Rei to actually talk back to her. 

"I do not pick on my daughter." She replied in a huffed tone of voice but there was a defensive quality in it that told Rei that she wasn't quite as sure as she wanted to give appearance of. 

"I don't know how you people refer it over here but from what I was taught if a person constantly criticizes another especially over small things it's called picking on that person. The only two conclusions I can draw from that are either you hate her or you are a bitter old lady."

"And which one am I?" Louisa shifted her cane in front of her and clasped her hands together on the top. Her eyes had a guarded expression to it and she looked like a woman who was waiting for a verdict. 

Strangely enough Rei felt the first stirring of pity when she watched the woman. She couldn't base her reaction on anything but her intuition. 

She tried to be gentle when she said, "I haven't been here long enough but the little I have seen of Trish, she seemed to be a pretty decent person. She's nice, polite, respectful and sensitive to others. She just doesn't seem to me like a person who would do something that would warrant that kind of hatred."

Louisa sniffed. "Not a bad assessment for someone who has only been here a day." She muttered under her breath. "So you're conclusion is I'm nothing but a bitter old lady."

"You don't look like you're happy."

One silver brow arched in the air. "Does the occasion seem like something to be joyous about? You might have hated your father and find his loss nothing of importance but I was quite fond of the boy."

The jab hurt but Rei kept her face smooth. 

"I wasn't just referring to now but in general. Something tells me that you've spent most of your life being bitter about something." 

Louisa barked a laugh but there was a bitter tone to it. "You want to know why I'm so bitter? Ask your dear grandmamma."

The information didn't surprise Rei, she had already deducted from yesterday that there was not much love between the sisters. 

Shrugging she said, "I'm not here to dig out your old family skeletons. Whatever grudge the two of you have is between the two of you, you might want to think about that too and not let that affect your relationship with others. From what I can see Trish seems to love you a lot and it would be a shame if she got fed up in the end."

She decided to leave with those parting words and let Louisa mull over them on her own. This was, she decided, the best she could do to help out a person in need. She didn't want to get herself more involved with the problems of this family. From what she had seen they had plenty of those. If it wasn't for the fact that she had stumbled across the pair, she wouldn't have interfered in the mother and daughter relationship either. 

Rei sighed; sometimes she wished her grandfather had been less adamant in teaching her the importance of helping others out. Maybe it would have been easier for her to walk away back then. Well at least he wouldn't frown now when she told him about this part of her trip. 

Thinking about the fact that she would soon return home lifted Rei's spirit considerably. It was going to be so good to be able to go back home, to return to familiar surrounding and friendly faces. 

She was just a few doors from her room when the sound of two of her least favorite people drifted through the hallway and caught her ears. 

Rei threw up her hands in the air in soundless despair. Was she going to run into peoples' conversations the whole day? Well unlike the other two times she had no interest in being in the near vicinity. Her spirit dampening, Rei hurried her steps so she could enter the sanctuary of her room and close out their voices when the sound of her mother's name being mentioned stopped her in her tracks. 

* * *

AN: Sorry for the delay, my initial plan was to finish the next ch of Destinies before continuing with this story but it seems I'm stuck in that one, but anyways I hope the chapter was worth the wait. I have to say I was very surprised at how Trish became the most memorable character of the Holdens. Unfortunately she's not the piano player. The identity will be clearer in the next chapter.

Many thanks to you all for reading this story and especially to those of you who left your reviews. Please continue to do so. 

As always a special thank you to my beta, charliechaplin2. 

// Fenix


	8. A father's will

****

Chapter 6: A father's will 

By Lady Fenix 

__

..one of the best traits that I love about Marcus is his flair for the unpredictable. Being around him makes me feel more alive than ever. I guess it has to do with that fascinating mind of his, most of the time trying to read his mind and his moves is like chasing rainbows.

From the journals of Sakura Hino

"What can you expect with a mother like that?" A voice sneered. Rei easily recognized the husky and the arrogant tone of Tory's. "You know what they say about rotten apples not falling far from the tree."

Rei scowled. Against herself, she felt her feet unconsciously move towards the doors where the voices were coming from. The wide double doors were slightly ajar, making it easy for her to listen in on the conversation. 

"I would have thought that she could at least have inherited Marcus' good manners. But I suppose that is hoping for too much considering her background." Marcia sighed. "The sight of her standing there and watching her own father with those that cold expression. It made my blood freeze."

"If you want my opinion, I didn't find her behavior quite that surprising; she made it clear enough to us yesterday that she didn't hold any warm feelings for her father." There was a tapping sound of nail clicking against glass and then Tory continued. "Though if she was smart she could have at least pretended to be sad in front of everyone."

"If the girl had possessed some intelligence she wouldn't have picked a fight with Madame to begin with yesterday." Marcia told in her in a dry tone.

Tory laughed. "That's true, did you see the look on Madame's face? If there had been any chance of the old crone accepting her, the stupid girl blew it with that move."

"She probably figures she will get enough now that her father's dead."

There was an answering snicker. "You're not telling me she's actually delusional enough to believe that she will inherit something? With things the way they were between them? Even her mother wouldn't have behaved in such a scandalous behavior."

"On the contrary nothing the girl has done before or now surprises me. It's nothing more than what I would have expected from a daughter of Sakura's."

There was moment of silence. 

"You know I never really did understand the animosity you had towards her. It would have been more understandable on her part considering yours and Marcus' past but –"

"Marcus and I only went out a few times." Marcia cut her off with steel in her tone. "It happened a long time ago, way before Sakura entered his life and it was nothing serious. I discovered very soon that Terrence and I were far more suited."

Shock rippled through Rei in hearing about her father's relationship with Marcia. At least this explained the nagging feeling her mother had had about the "something" Marcus had been keeping from her. Had her father kept silent because it hadn't meant anything or because it had? Every time Rei had heard Marcia speak of either of parents there had always been a heavy emotion in her voice that spoke of a far deeper feeling for both. Could Marcia even have had something to do with her parents' breakup?

No, Rei shook her head mentally. That was just ridiculous and yet… She wanted so badly to understand. People kept telling her that her parents had been too different and because of the friction caused by it, the love they once had disappeared too. And yet if that was the case, then why did her mother die with her father's name on her lips? 

And so Rei stayed and she listened, not feeling the least of bit guilty for eavesdropping. 

" – never fell for that goody act of hers." Tory said. "It was so obvious only the men were stupid enough to fall for it. Do you know that Glenn even gave me a good lecture once just because I wouldn't by her act? She's a sweet girl. It's hard on her having to adjust to all of this especially when she never had the schooling we did. You should try to be more supportive of her instead of jealous." Tory mimicked in what Rei presumed was her dead husband's voice. 

"As fond as I was of Glenn, he never did have the knack of spotting the true characteristics of people." Marcia made a pitying sound. "As if there was anything to be jealous of that cheap woman. She was nothing but yellow trash who…" 

As Rei listened to the colorful and not too pleasant description Marcia gave of her mother she began to see red. She clenched her fists so hard her knuckles were turning white. That was it. She had heard enough. 

Rei reached out and pushed open the door. It hit the adjourning wall with a satisfying bang that had both women climbing in the air and giving out startled screeches. 

"What's the meaning of this!?"

"Don't you have any manners at all, girl!?"

"No more than the two of you." Rei replied in a dangerous tone, that was even more prominent in contrast to their raised voices.

Tory sucked in her breath in outrage. "How dare you!"

"Oh shut up, you gossiping hag!" Rei snapped. "I dare a lot more than that and if you continue badmouthing my mother the two of you are going to find out just how much." 

She bore her violet eyes into them. Tory moved her speechless mouth a few times, looking all the world like a guppy. Marcia on the other hand pulled herself erect, frost covering her person like an ice queen as she stared down at Rei with condemning eyes. "See, what did I tell you Tory? Bad apples don't fall far from the tree. This complete lack of breeding is just what one would expect from someone like her."

Rei growled under her breath and took a step closer. 

Tory finally finding her voice demanded. "What do you think you're doing? Are you going to attack us? If you so much as touch us I'll call the authorities and have you deported!"

If she had said that with more authority in her voice, Rei might have given her some thought. But with a voice that barely went above a pipe, Rei ignored her like the annoying buzzing fly that she was and instead focused her attention on the woman that seemed to have been her mother's nemesis. 

Stopping directly in front of her and appearing as if she was looking down instead of up at the woman Rei said with a dangerous undertone, "For someone who seems to give much consideration to good breeding, you don't show much of having that yourself."

Marcia met her eyes calmly. "And your point is?"

"Talking behind somebody's back and using languages as the ones you just used to describe my mother is hardly what a person with "good breeding", " She raised both her hands and hand and signaled the quoting sign with her fingers "as you call it would do. If you got something to say about me or my mother then at least have the guts to say it to my face not behind closed doors like a coward."

"A coward! And that's supposed to be coming from a little eavesdropper like you?" Tory sneered.

Rei threw her a glance that had her gulping and taking a step backwards. Turning her attention back to Marcia she said evenly. "I don't know why it is that you seem to hate my mother so much. Whether its because of my father or because of something else nor-" she added in a louder voice when it seemed like Marcia was about to say something, "do I find myself wanting to know. I know you are not happy with my presence here. I can tell you that I don't want to be here anymore than you want me here, but since neither one of us have any choice in the matter how about we just come to an agreement? Keep your thoughts about my mother to yourself while I'm staying her and I'll stay out of your way."

Their eyes met and clashed. A battle of wills took place. While her face was completely schooled, Rei could sense the emotions vibrating from Marcia. The woman's dislike of her was so powerful that it nearly felt tangible - an aura of negative feelings that she could almost reach out and touch. 

"And why should I agree to that?" Marcia finally broke the silence.

While anger coiled around her like a snake, Rei was surprised to find her voice strangely calm when she said. "How would you feel if I started calling you all those names you just called my mother in front of your children?" 

From the way she blinked her eyes, Rei knew that she had caught the woman by surprise. 

"Very well." Marcia inclined her head regally. "Just make sure you stay out of my way then."

"With pleasure." Rei told her at the same time as Tory let out. "What?! Are you just going accept that?"

Marcia moved. "Come along, Tory."

"Why are we the one to leave for? She's the one who barged in on us. If anyone should leave she's- "

"Tory." Marcia cut her off. "We have other things to attend to. It's time." She gave her a meaningful look. 

Tory's green eyes which were slightly vacant, darkened with understanding. She made a wordless O sound accompanied by, "Yes of course." Casting one last parting annoyed glance at Rei, she hurriedly followed after Marcia who had already disappeared through the door. Rei couldn't help but to compare Tory to a small poodle in hurry to follow her mistress on her daily walk. 

After the left, she counted silently to ten before she let out a wordless sigh and shifted her stiff shoulders. She could feel the tension slowly seep out of her body. 

Yet another ugly scene with her father's relatives. She wondered if this would be the last one she would have this weekend or if she could expect more, something told her the latter would probably be truer. 

The clapping of hands had the tension in her body returning in a heartbeat. Turning Rei faced the stunning looking blonde by the door. She was tall and slender, with tawny blonde hair that was surprisingly as long as Rei's. The large blue eyes, strangely familiar, looked at her with frank honesty and with a slight mischievous light. 

It was the lack of distrust in her eyes that had Rei softening her tone instead of barking. "Can I help you with anything?" 

Rei's breath caught at the blinding smile the woman gave. It was like staring directly into the sun on a beautiful summer day. 

"Hi, I'm Mina Arlington." 

She entered the room with an extended hand. 

Rei recognized the last name and some of the tension left her body. She reached out and folded her hand into Mina's and was surprised to find the handshake startlingly strong. Like Ami, Mina's soft look was deceptive. 

"Rei. Rei Hino."

Mina flashed her dazzling smile once more. "I know, I came here looking for you."

At that cryptic remark, Rei's inner defense came on alert once more. "Oh."

The look Mina's face clearly said that she understood what the 'oh' meant. "Isn't it wonderful when your reputation precedes you? No introduction is necessary then." She told her cheekily.

"It depends on the reputation." Rei disagreed. "If you are here to tell me my presence is not welcome then save your breath, I've already gotten the point."

Mina gave her a sympathetic look. "They gave you the third degree huh? Well don't worry I'm not here to do that. Actually I think you handled the situation quite well there. If I had heard someone give that kind of description of Gramps I would have punched them."

Rei tossed her hair over one shoulder. "The thought did cross my mind but she's not worth the trouble." Casting her a glance she said, "Now that you have found me, did I fit the description?" 

Not the least affected by the rude tone, Mina's lips curved to the side as she gave Rei a once over. "I have to say you look kind of tiny. From what I heard I was expecting at least a six foot tall Asian woman with red eyes and horns, breathing fire."

"I'm in disguise right now, this appearance is more appropriate for a funeral." Rei told her dryly. So rumors were already flying. 

Rei was caught off guard by the grin the blonde flashed at her. She would have thought her cheeky answer would anger the woman. She was even more surprised when Mina said, "I like your sense of humor, I have a feeling you and I are going to get along famously." 

When she came over and linked her arms with Rei's, Rei couldn't help to keep her body from stiffening. Mina didn't pay any attention to it however as she dragged Rei with her out of the room.

"Where are we going?" Rei demanded as she followed Mina down the hallway. The woman didn't seem to be wanting to let go of her any time soon. The cynical part of her wondered if Mina wasn't playing a trick on her, trying to appear friendly so that Rei would drop her guard and all the while having something not as pleasant in mind for her. It was a ridiculous thought but then again when it came to the Holden's she really didn't know what to expect of them. 

Unaware of Rei's growing suspicion, Mina threw her a surprised look. "Why we're heading to the study for the reading of the will of course."

Rei frowned at first and then her face smoothed out as she realized what Mina was trying to say. "Look," she said and halted. "I think you've got things all wrong here. Obviously you don't know a lot about my relationship with my father but I can assure you that there's no reason for my presence there."

Mina gave a lopsided smile. "Actually I think you're the one who got things wrong here. Uncle Artur asked for someone to fetch you seeming as he suspected you would probably be the only who didn't know Marcus' will would be read today. I would think that uncle Artur being Marcus' lawyer would know more than anyone else the content of the will."

Dazed by Mina's revelation, Rei wasn't aware of the other woman's skillful maneuver of her through the hallways and down the stairs until they stopped in front of a pair of wide oak doors. 

Mina rapped her knuckled against the door once. 

"Why don't you look me up once this is finished and we can gossip about it? I'm curious to know what the stone guy gave you." She whispered to Rei before opening the door and pushing her in.

Rei gaped at the winking face of Mina, a mixture of annoyance and amusement at her accurate description of her father. She didn't have time to give the blonde more thoughts however when a loud voice demanded angrily.

"WHAT THE HELL IS SHE DOING HERE?" 

Turning, Rei faced the crowded room. Her eyes rested on Terrence first, the one who had made the outburst, his face was as dark as a thundercloud as he glared at Artur Kent. Letting her gaze roam over the rest of the crowd, Rei could see that Terrence wasn't the only who wasn't thrilled by her presence. Both Tory and Frederic were looking at her with resentment, Marcia's was a mixture of their feeling and apprehension. Drew was wearing a sneer while his twin was giving Rei a pitying look saying clearly Rei ought to know her place better. Rei didn't know whether it was due to their earlier conversation but Louisa was refusing to look at her. Trish was wringing her hands. Madame, Jay and the two servants, Bentley and Sarah wore expressionless masks. If it weren't for the fact that James had given her an encouraging look and nod, Rei would probably had turned around and left the room. The hostility was thick enough to carve and it created a sickening feeling in her stomach. 

"Well, why the hell is she here?" Terrence roared once again when Artur continued to shuffle the papers in front of him. The shuffling ended when Terrence slammed a large hand on top of the papers. Artur wasn't the only one who flinched. 

"Terrence, calm down." Martin, the only one in the room aside from Louisa who hadn't looked at, took a few steps forward and grabbed hold of his brother's arm in a restraining fashion. 

"Calm down?! You're telling me to calm down? Why the hell should I want to calm down?" Terrence shook away Martin angrily. "Does this day look like it's a calm day to begin with?! We just buried Marcus, the press is hounding us and at the moment they're parked outside the gates waiting like vultures for one of us to step outside. Do we get any piece and quiet inside? No, because this geezer here insists on reading the will. It's a funeral! It's a private affair. It should be reserved for the immediate family only, for God's sake! But wherever we turn we're surrounded by outsiders. I've had it! When is it ever going to be just the family?"

A muscle ticked steadily on Martin' right jaw as he clenched his teeth together. His voice was surprisingly calm however when he spoke. "I know how you feel. You are angry right now and so am I. But now isn't the time for it. Don't take it out on others. There will be time for us to grieve for him. In private. Let Artur do his job."

"He can do his job, without her being here." Terrence pointed a finger at Rei.

"Actually," Artur cleared his throat and spoke up for the first time. "I can't. Miss Hino's presence here is just as required as the rest of you."

"WHAT?!" The roar came from three different places at the same time.

"You're not telling me that she's actually –"

"Are you claiming that Marcus left something –"

"You're joking!"

"Silence!"

Like the sharp command she made yesterday everyone in the room fell into grave silence as all eyes swiveled to the head of the family. 

"Now that we are all gathered here, why don't you start the reading, Artur?" Madame ordered in a lower tone of voice, ignoring the rest of the people in the room. 

"Ah yes." Artur cleared his voice once more and then began reading the will.

Rei was surprised when it turned out that her father had begun making his will over ten years ago. At about the same time that he started his political career. A will wasn't exactly something people rushed to prepare. Say what you want about Marcus Holden but one thing was for sure; he was never unprepared nor was he stingy. 

As Rei listened to the amount of money that had been left for the majoron Bentley and his wife Sarah, she couldn't help but to feel impressed. Converting it to Japanese yen and she realized it was more than five years of wages for her. Obviously the couple must have found it generous also as Sarah burst into tears and hid her face behind the handkerchief. She kept murmuring Marcus' name over and over again. 

Shifting a bit uncomfortably on his seat, Artur continued. 

Drew and Frederic were each given a car. Rei wasn't very informed in the matters of cars but from the way Drew's eyes lit up she suspected it must be a good sports vehicle. Trish and Louise were given his cabin in Vermont along with the message to make use of it. The message might have sounded cryptic to Rei but Trish seemed at least to understand enough to give off a wistful sad smile. Charmaine was given his art collection, a surprising news to Rei who never knew her father had been into arts. Marcia's children were each given a hefty trust fund with Marcia as their appointed trustee. Martin was given the chess pieces and Jay the golf clubs. Both men received their gifts with wry smiles as if contemplating on some inner jokes. Judging by the looks on Terrence's face when Artur spoke about him, he didn't quite as impressed or as satisfied with the gifts that his brother had given him. James listened to his name without showing any emotion. 

The tension in the room grew as there were only three people left in the room that had not been mention. From where she stood, Rei had a good view over the room and she could see several shifting and looking nervously at each other. 

"And to my daughter," Artur looked up and met her eyes across the room. The whole room seemed to hold its collective breaths as the members waited. "I leave her my condominium on Battery Park."

Rei blinked in surprise at the news as well as the way the whole room seemed to heave a sigh of relief. It was surprisingly enough that her father would leave her anything but why a condo? What could she use a condo in New York for when she lived in Tokyo? And yet from the way the main part of the Holdens reacted it was obvious that they had expected even more. The whole thing seemed very strange. 

"To Louisa, I would like her to have the Black Pearl necklace to match with the earrings she received from grandfather."

For the first time Rei was shown a speechless Louisa as the elderly woman's jaws just dropped. The news seemed to have caught her completely by surprise. Surprisingly enough or maybe not, Madame's lips pursed slightly in a sign of disapproval; her first sign of emotion since the meeting started. She didn't say anything though, instead she focused her attention on Artur in expectation waiting for him to announce the last of the will. 

The tension in the room seemed to have lessened considerably by now. It was as if everybody already knew what the lawyer was going to say. While some didn't appear to be that thrilled by the outcome at least they appeared to be resigned to it. The moment Artur finished announcing Madame as the soul heir to all of Marcus remaining assets, the people in the room started to shift and move and making signs of leaving. 

Not in any mood to stay, Rei was already resting her hand on the doorknob before she caught Artur's voice calling them back. 

"Before you all start to disappear on me, I'm afraid there's something else I need to clear up first."

Rei couldn't have said she had ever experienced the atmosphere change in a room faster than what just happened. It was like the whole collective room tensed as all attention reverted back onto the lawyer. 

Artur feeling the pressure shifted slightly and wiped his forehead with a linen handkerchief. He purposely didn't look at Madame who was drilling her sharp eyes into his skull as if attempting to read his mind. 

"With the exception of a handful of you, most here already heard the will being read to you on the day Marcus had it made. The slight changes had pertained to the addition of a few people." He glanced at Rei, Jay and the twins. "There is however a major change that took place recently, in fact the day before Marcus' accident."

Several glances exchanged in the room.

"What kind of change are you talking about?" Martin asked carefully.

"Marcus added a codicil on the will. Unfortunately even I am not aware of the content of that."

"Then who is?" Terrence demanded with annoyance.

Artur gave him a pitying look that said he thought Terrence ought to do something about his lack of manners. 

There was a knock on the door.

"Finally." Artur muttered then in a louder voice he said. "Would you please let our guest in, my dear?" 

Giving a mental shrug, Rei opened the door and came to face with a wiry looking man with a sickening pallor on his face. Sweat coated his face and he was puffing for breath as if he had run for miles. The man gave one look at Rei and nearly jumped out of his skin. Recovering quickly he fumbled with his briefcase as he entered the room and joined Artur at the desk.

"Everyone, I would like to present to you Derek Ridgeway, the youngest lawyer in the firm. Mr. Ridgeway helped Marcus in writing the codicil and will read its content to us."

The younger man gulped a breath and nearly knocked over the cup on the desk in his nervous state. Papers went flying when he took out the legal documents. Several eyebrows rose in speculation and derision at the man's competence. Clearly most wondered how Artur and his partners would hire a man like that to work in such a prestigious firm as Kent & Johnson. 

Their doubts vanished when Ridgeway starting speaking however. The moment he sat down on the chair and took on his glasses, a change of personality seemed to take place in front of them. Sharpness entered his eyes and he spoke with an air of authority that outstripped Artur.

"I'm going to read to you the following that has been stated on Mr. Holden's will." Ridgeway cleared his throat and began reading. "I, Marcus Holden declare this to be a first Codicil to my will dated August the third in the year nineteen eighty seven. To my mother Maxine Dumont Holden, I give all my assets with the exception of my ten percent share of Holden Inc." 

There was a collective gasp from the room but Ridgeway continued on as if he hadn't heard anything.

"Due to the changed circumstances and the age of the person I have in mind I would like to ask the following people for a favor. In consideration to their friendship to me and my family, their loyalty and their wisdom I would ask them to act as trustee and advisor for my heir. Should the first person decline the job, then the offer will go to the second one. My first request goes out to…"

Ridgeway paused dramatically. Strangely enough Rei was keeping her eyes not on him but on Marcia and she was not even surprised to see the slightly smug look on her eyes. The woman seemed to have expected this.

"…James Arlington –"

"What?!" Martha's face turned chalk white, the pallor enhancing the rich blueness of her eyes. 

"With his seniority and experience," Ridgeway continued ignoring Marcia's exclamation. "I find he is the one most suited to take this role. Should he decline then I ask Artur Kent to grant me my request. I trust in their friendship and loyalty to this family that one will be there for charge. As for the identity of the person they are to help, I hereby give and bequeath my ten percent share of Holden Inc -"

More than a few were sharing expectant looks among themselves. 

"- to my daughter Rei –"

The rest was drowned out in the roar that literally shook the room. The Holdens had jumped up on their feet, angry voices shouting in outrage. Rei could barely hear what they were saying through the roaring in her own head. Shock stabbed her like a lightning bolt, traveling through her numb systems.

He made her his heir. He gave her his share of the company. The most important and valued possession that he owned. The heart of the Holden's. And he gave it to her.

Through her dazed mind, Rei met the calm eyes of the man who had just turned her world upside down. Unlike before he seemed completely in control now, calm and collected; completely ignoring the angry shouts and looks from many in the room, the tall lanky man approached her. He said something but she couldn't hear him through the roaring in her head, and then he took her hand and put something there. Before she could look down someone forcefully grabbed her arm and yanked her away.

"Just what the hell did you do to change his mind?" Fred snarled.

Rei stared up at him. While her mind recoiled at the naked anger in his look, her body didn't seem to react at all to the signals that her brain was sending out. 

"Well why aren't you answering? Don't pull the stupid I-don't-know-what's-going-on act on me. I can see right through you. Spit it out or do I need to shake it out of you?" To make his point he tightened his hold on her painfully and shook: once, twice. 

"All right that's enough." Jay appeared beside her and grabbed hold of Fred's wrist just when he was about to shake a third time. "Let her go." 

"Mind your own business." Fred ordered and slapped his hand away and added it with a push. The force behind it would probably have sent Rei all the way to the wall but thanks to his larger and heavier built, Jay only stumbled back a step before gaining is footing.

"Not if you're going to harass her like that. You seem to forget that this is Marcus' last wish. At least have the decency to respect a dead man's wish." Jay told him grimly.

The room had turned deadly quiet as every pair of eyes were reverted to the trio.

"That's easy for you to say. You're not the one who's just been cheated." Fred told him bitterly. He cast a glance at James, who had started to approach them before halting only a few feet away, and then back at Jay. Giving off a sneer he added, "And then again, why should you mind. After all this just fits right into your plan. How convenient that he," he jerked his head towards the elder Arlington, "just happened to be the trustee and she the beneficiary. You two probably had it all worked out and then used this bitch to sweet talk her daddy into it. What did it require to talk her into it? Did you sleep with her? Or did send your old man to –" 

The rest was cut off as the first punch flew. Rei was released so abruptly that she stumbled back but no one paid attention to her as everyone focused on trying to separate the two snarling men that were currently rolling on the floor, intent on beating the life out of the other. Curses rained. Fists flew. Tables crashed. Exclamations burst out and cries went. 

Watching the scene with detached eyes, Rei slowly backed away from the chaos that reigned in the room. Her fingers fumbled over the door knob a few times before she managed to get a real hold on it. Wrenching the knob, she pulled and gathering the last dredges of willpower to force her body to move and fled the room. 

Once her feet started to move, they seemed to gain life of their own as her legs quickly took her farther and farther away from the chaos she left behind. She didn't know where she was headed, but let her legs do the deciding. All she knew was she needed to get out; she needed to get away. 

Her legs were starting to ache and her breathing to hurt. All out of breath, Rei slowed down, continued a few more feet until she came to a complete halt. With dazed eyes, she looked at her surroundings. The bushes, the flowers and the pavement telling her she had somehow ended up in the garden. 

Except from the faint chirping sounds of birds in the far background, the place was completely quiet and strangely serene. 

Spotting a stone bench not far away, Rei headed towards it and sat down. 

Questions spun in her head. Why? Why? Why did he do it? Why did he leave her with the stocks? The apartment was enough of a shock, never in her life would she have expected him leave her this and from the reactions in the room neither did anyone else. So why? Why did he do it?

There was a rustling sound and looking down at her right hand she saw the envelope that was clutched there. Slowly she lifted her hand and stared at the crumbled piece of paper. It felt heavy in her hand, telling her that it contained more than just a sheet of paper. She easily recognized the handwriting of her name on the front. She had seen that tidy precise note plenty of times outside the cards of the gifts her father had supposedly bought for her her. 

Moving like a zombie, Rei broke the seal and pulled out the thin sheet of paper from the envelope. Her eyes scanned the content. 

__

Rei,

If you are reading this letter then it means I didn't get the chance to finish the task I set out to do. You, I believe, are the only one who can finish this task for me. 

I'm going to entrust you with the most important thing in my life. Take care of Holden and don't let your anger towards me cloud your judgment in deciding its future. Prove to me that you have inherited more than just the bad traits of your mother and I. Save the company and finish the task I was never able to. 

This will be my first and final request as your father. 

Dad

P.S. Trust no one. And…I'm sorry.

Rei tipped the envelope upside down and a small key fell into her palm. The key was simple and plain, gleaming as it caught the light. There was nothing attached to it, no key ring, no notes; nothing that could reveal where the key would fit.

Rei stared at the key but in her mind, questions of other kinds whirled. 

Sorry. Sorry for what? For pushing her into this role and making her the mortal enemy of practically everyone in his family? For being absent throughout her life? For never being there for her as a father should? Or worse for simply not being able to love her? 

And why, why couldn't he have the courage to say this to her face to face? She didn't want his apologies. What she wanted were some explanations. She wanted the truth. She wanted to know why. 

For someone who had just received a great amount of fortune, Rei felt considerably cheated, even more so after she read his letter. For as long as she could remember, Marcus had never once revealed his true feelings for her. He never once acted like anything aside from a distant uncle. But now for the first time he was speaking to her as a father and it was through a letter. A letter that clearly indicated that if he hadn't died so untimely she might never have gotten it in the first place. 

Rei balled the key into her hand, the sharp edges cutting into her flesh. But no matter how hard she clenched her fist, the pain there still did not compare to the one she felt in the region of her heart. 

Her eyes started to sting and a lump formed in her throat. She tried to swallow the lump but it only created a burning sensation that spread downwards to her chest. 

Fighting hard to control her feelings, Rei stared down at the letter in front of her. She tried to read the content once more but the words seemed to move on their own, squeezing themselves together and moving in waves as her vision blurred. Blinking her eyes, she tried to clear her vision but the stinging sensation just grew. The first sniff came even as the first tear fell from her lashes. A crystal drop that shone in the crisp noon air as it fell and got soaked up in the fragile texture of the letter. 

She reached up a hand to brush away the tear in her eye, but just as she did another one fell from the other eye. 

Loneliness wrapped around her like a blanket of hurt. While she knew she had people who loved her, somehow the knowledge of that still couldn't fill the empty vortex inside her; it could not subside the aching sorrow that was gnawing at her.

Rei closed her eyes to block out the pain as she wrapped her arms around herself to keep the chill at bay. 

She wanted to feel the love of a parent. She wanted the comfort of a parent. She wanted to know what that feeling felt like, to be held close, to be cherished. To be able to know in your heart that no matter what, they were your parents and you could always count on them. She knew her mother had loved her a lot but for the life of her she could not remember what her mother's embrace felt like. As for her father… For once, just for once she wished she could feel the real embrace of a parent. 

Strong arms gathered her close and she was enveloped in a tight hug. She felt the faint scent of cigar the kind that her father used to smoke. For a brief silly moment, Rei actually thought her father had heard her wish and returned in spirit to grant it to her. Because unlike some people, Rei knew spirits did exist, having seen them around the temple that she grew up in. Then she realized the embrace was warm, spirits were never warm.

Stiffening, Rei looked up and found a pair of sympathetic angelic eyes look down on her. If father Christmas did exist, Rei thought absently, his would be the face he'd have. Strong, friendly, understanding and loving.

"It's okay child. Let it out. Let it all out. You'll feel much better afterwards." James Arlington told her gently.

It was softness in his voice, the gentleness in the way he looked down at her, the kind of gentleness and caring that she had always secretly hoped her father would gaze on her, that broke the last shred of control. 

Her eyes pooled over and giving up, Rei leaned against the old man's strong chest and let the dam break. She let go of her control. She let go of the tight bubble in the region of her heart where she buried all the hurt, anger, sorrow, disappointment and even the love that she had felt for her father come out and let them all come to the surface. All the emotions crashed upon her like waves of stormy sea. 

And she wept.

Her father was gone. She would never see him again. He would never turn up for her birthdays. There would never be anymore impersonal presents with notes that didn't match the content. She would never hear his terse and aloof tone of voice talking on the other end of the line, giving her one of his many excuses of why he had to cancel the meeting. 

She wept even harder.

The arms holding her remained strong and assuring. They offered comfort and sympathy at the same time. There was a gentle understanding there but something still lacked in the embrace. And when Rei realized what it was, she cried even harder. 

It wasn't his negligence that she had resented. Deep down she admitted, she would have forgiven him that if only he had once, just once embraced her in his arms and offered her the kind of comfort and love a parent would show his child. Everything would have been fine with her, if only for once she didn't have to doubt his feelings for her. But it was too late now. She would never know if her father had really loved her. 

~ o ~ 

James found her in the Music Room; pacing like a caged panther. 

Having just left a distraught young woman grieving for her father, the sight of Maxine's determined face and ready to chew rock attitude brought a fleeting smile upon James' lips. 

"Finished your work as an advisor?" Maxine asked with a sneer when he closed the door behind him.

Undaunted by the unfriendliness in her tone, James calmly entered the room. "Aye, for the time being."

The reminder of his current position brought fire into her eyes. "Explain." Came the terse command.

James shrugged and fished out a cigar from the inner pocket of his coat. "At the moment you know as much as I." 

Maxine watched him light the cigar with the ever present gold lighter, the very same one he received from his wife twenty years ago, with a negligent and easy move - resentment bubbled up her throat. 

"Don't tell me this all came as news to you. He must have said something."

James took a slow drag and exhaled slowly, his blue eyes calm as he studied her. "You know as well as I that nobody has ever been able to predict Marcus' moves. It's one of the reasons he was such a good politician."

"We're not talking about politics right now. We're talking about my company!" Maxine snapped him and slammed her palm against the smooth surface of the piano. 

The act revealed just how agitated she was by the whole situation. That musical instrument was one of her most cherished possessions. Knowing that, James softened his tone. "Marcus must have had his reasons, he loved the company too."

"Obviously not enough to make him want to work for it." Maxine added bitterly.

James' lips curved slightly to the side. Now she really sounded like a petulant child. "And why should he, when there are far more capable people than him that can run the business? You didn't raise a fool, Maxine."

"I always thought I managed to do a good job with him. But right now I'm starting to doubt that." She reached up and brushed her hand against her sleek hair. It was an impatient gesture on her part, rather than necessity. 

James shook his head. "You are far too harsh on them, they are fine men, each in their own way." His tone clearly said this wasn't the first time they've conversed around this topic. 

He got the same reply as he always did: a decisive snort. 

James frowned. "They might have their faults but then again when has any one of us been perfect?" 

At that statement both thought of their past; the decision they made and the consequences of them. Their trips along memory lane did not take the same route but both ended in the same place and that was their relationship. But since the ship had sailed a long time ago, neither spoke up about it. 

"Where is the girl now?" Madame cleared her throat. 

"Mina gave her a ride back to town."

"Well she was in an awful hurry to get back." The tone was snide; she knew it and couldn't help it. Something about the girl rubbed her the wrong way. Every time she met those eyes they seemed to look at her with accusation. Granted she had been glad when her son finally got his senses back and ended his marriage but she had nothing to with the breakup. "Couldn't wait to spend her fortune? Or –"

"Stop." James cut her off before she could continue saying things that she would later regret "She's not as cold as she appears to be. In fact when I found her in the garden she was devastated." 

By the way Madame looked at him James knew his sharp tone had caught her by surprise. He didn't usually talk to her that way and he probably would not have either if it weren't for the fact that he could still feel the wetness that clung to his shirt where the girl in question had left her tears as evidence of her feelings. 

Hurt that her oldest friend would take the side of a stranger over her, Madame snorted. "I don't believe that for one second. She certainly hadn't shown any evidence of having a compassionate heart." She gave a decisive laughter. "In fact she fits right in with the rest of the out there." She nodded towards the door where the members of her family where scattered. "Rock solid money bleeder all waiting for me to draw my last breath so they can fight over my money."

Her tone was hard and bitter but James knew her well enough to see through the brave façade she was holding up and recognize the hurt she was hiding. 

"Frederic might have behaved foolishly down there but he was only acting out of outrage on your behalf." James told her gently, easily finding the source of her pain. "Just like Jay acted on mine." 

Madame wrapped her arm around her waist and stared out the window. It was a protective gesture, a show of vulnerability that she only did when she was around him. Feeling his heart stir, James moved to her side and gently put his hand on her shoulder. She looked strong and capable but he was probably the only one alive now who knew just how frail those shoulders were. 

"You really should try to be less hard on them. If you for once stop trying to keep them out of your life, you would realize that they truly care about you." He pointed out gently.

Maxine looked up at him, her gaze frank and direct. It was a look that many men found disconcerting but that he appreciated from the very first time they met. 

"I have my reasons. You of all people should know that, James. You've seen what trust has given me. Even my son stabs me in the back."

"Marcus must have had good reason for doing what he did."

She met his eyes steadily. "Yes, obviously you were it." 

He was silent. Her accusation hung heavily in the air between them. 

When he finally broke the silence, his voice was controlled, far too controlled. "After fifty years of friendship I really thought we knew each other well enough so that there was nothing either one of us could do that could surprise the other. Obviously I was wrong."

He let go of her. It was either that or wrap his hands around her neck. It still surprised him how a peaceful man like him could have such violent thoughts when she was concerned. Then again that has always been her appeal to him. Where his wife had brought out the goodness in him, the woman in front of him always brought out the wilder part.

"What do you expect me to think when instead of returning the shares I gave to him, he ends up giving them to a daughter he barely acknowledges and a man who hasn't paid any attention to the wellbeing of the company for the past ten years?" Madame demanded. 

Her eyes searched his, desperately trying too seek the answer that would ease the suspicion in her heart; suspicion grown out of decades of self-preservation and too many betrayal from those she had considered were her friends and family.

James looked back at her coolly. She secretly held her breath as she waited in fear. When he finally did reply, it was not the answer she'd expected.

"You ought to be ashamed of yourself. After so many years, I would think that you would have learned to trust in people more, if not me then at least in your family."

She blinked. To her it was as much reaction as someone who received as slap in the face. 

"What do you mean by that?" She demanded.

"Just listen to yourself. Do you honestly believe either Marcus or I are capably of doing something that can hurt you, knowing how much the company means to you?"

"I really don't know what to believe in anymore." Madame told him honestly. "If you had asked me yesterday which two people I could trust in, I would have named the two of you and yet today I'm informed about this arrangement made between the two of you." She looked him in the eyes. "What am I to believe?"

He saw the vulnerability in her eyes. Unlike most people he had always been able to see it. It stirred his heart, as always, but he didn't act upon it. Instead he deliberately made his voice hard. 

"I'm only going to tell you this once. I don't know what Marcus has planned but I will trust in his judgment and do my best to help him by fulfilling his last request. If that means supporting his daughter then that is what I will do."

"And what if supporting means going against me? Will you do that too?"

"I don't believe that day will ever come." He told her with conviction.

It wasn't the answer she had been looking for but pride refused to let her show the disappointment. 

"You sound very sure."

"That's because unlike you I believe in Marcus." He stated simply.

Her eyes became distant. "I did believe in him. Once. It was when I gave him my shares."

James shook his head. "No, you wanted to control him." He corrected her and there was as a sad note to his voice. "That, Maxine, has always been one of your major flaws. You've always wanted to control everyone around you. That is also unfortunately part of your tragedy since people tend to react differently when they are being controlled. It as also part of the reason why everyone in this household never managed to achieve any true happiness

Color drained from her face. 

"Are you claiming that I'm the one who brought misery to this household?"

"Both yes and no. They each brought it upon themselves, but to a certain extent you are not completely out of fault either. You claim there's no sense of family and yet have you ever thought about your behavior? You are the head of this family and they all look upon you to set the example, even Louisa. But what do you do? You keep them at arm's length. Never letting them get too close and never letting them get to far either. They are allowed to live their lives just as long as they live them by your decree. How much space does that give for love, for trust or for happiness?"

"I'm only trying to save them a lot of hurt. I won't stand by and watch them run when I know it's a cliff right ahead. If I hadn't stepped in all these times there wouldn't be a Holden left to begin with."

James smiled, recalling the many times she had come to the rescue of her family, from her parents to her siblings, to her children and to her nephew and nieces. It was that fierce loyalty, the unwavering courage and the flaming passion that he had been drawn to from the very beginning. "You always did say that. But have you ever thought about the fact that there are times when you can step in and help and times when it would be better to step aside and let them make the mistake? If you insist on holding their hands forever they will never learn to walk on their own. It is by making mistakes in life that we learn to become wiser."

Criticism wasn't something she took easily and she proved that now by firing her own accusation. "If this is how you felt then why haven't you spoken up sooner, why speak up now?"

James shrugged. "What is it that they say? Better late than never?" 

In truth he didn't speak before because while he always thought Maxine was a bit too controlling of her family, he never realized her behavior might have been one of the major problems. He supposed in a way, like the rest of the family members, he had unconsciously begun to differ to her too. But with the appearance of Rei, or more precisely her show of rebellion last night, had him realizing that, that might be one of the things lacking in their life. Rei being the only one not brought up in this household or lived in it for so long, could question her the way the rest of them had stopped doing. Everyone did things Maxine's way, whether they liked it or not even to the point of when they knew it was wrong. 

"Well you know what you can do with your advice." Maxine snapped angrily, yanking him abruptly back to the present.

James inwardly sighed. "If you don't change your attitude soon you might find yourself not loosing just your son but everyone else as well. Let go of your fears, Maxine. Let them in to your heart before it's too late."

"Oh really? It hasn't stopped you from loving me." 

The room was suddenly covered in silence; a heavy awkward silence at her sudden hurl of accusation. 

While they were both aware of his feelings for her it was a mutual silent consent on both parts never to speak of it. 

Shame filled her but it was too late to regret what anger had made her do. She had a temper, it had been renowned even when she was a child. Over the years she had learned to control it better, at least enough to never allow herself to let it loose on those dearest to her. Or so she thought. 

"Yes." James said with a low voice. "I do love you." 

Until now she had not realized how much she had wanted to hear him say those words. Though somehow she had not pictured him looking at her quite that way. His blue eyes, the color of the Pacific, looked at her with the same cool quality. There was no tenderness there, nor any other warmth that would give credit to his feelings. And the next thing he said made it even worse.

"And that is probably also the most foolish mistake I have ever made. Unfortunately for either of us, I'm unable to do anything to change that now. You might however want to think about your attitude towards the members of your family or one day you might just find that there's nobody left around you." 

With those parting words he turned and left the room, leaving her to mull over what he had just said. He knew he was harsh towards her, but sometimes it was the only to get her to listen. That stubborn streak, which was like a mile wide, was one of her not so endearing qualities. It made it very difficult for a person to try and talk sense into her. 

He was hoping that she might reconsider and maybe cut Rei some slack, if not for the girl herself then maybe for Marcus' sake. After all, that boy has not been happy ever since his marriage broke up and to a certain degree Maxine had been partly involved in that too. 

~ o ~ 

"You know the reason we stopped for food was so that you could actually eat and not play around with it." Mina's voice cut through Rei's thoughts, bringing her back from the memory lane. 

Rei blinked her eyes and the vision of the dark study with its mahogany walls, angry people and flurry of activities vanished to be replaced by the serene sea food restaurant with white walls and spectacular view of the ocean. She shifted her gaze to her companion, who was sitting across the table from her. 

Mina had insisted that they make a stop on their way back to the city and eat. Since Rei was very grateful to her for giving her a ride and ending her hellish weekend, it would have been churlish on her part to disagree. The problem was however she really wasn't hungry which she also told her hostess. 

Mina responded by giving her an understanding smile. "You still have to eat sooner or later. It's already half past two and by the time we reach the city it'll be nearing four o'clock. Trust me you are going to feel hungry then. Just try out the salmon it's really good."

She gestured to her own plate where half of the pan-seared salmon was already gone. 

Rei blinked. The plate was large and the salmon had filled nearly the whole plate and she was pretty sure her mind hadn't wandered off for more than ten minutes. She looked at the slender woman across from her.

"You must be hungry." She murmured. 

Mina grinned and took a sip of Evian. "You haven't seen Serena eat yet. Now that's a girl who's always famished." 

Briefly Rei wondered if Mina was referring to Serena Kent. But she quickly dashed those thoughts away. If the woman did eat constantly there was no way she could keep that form of hers. 

"Come now, take a bite or two. You're going to make me look bad in front of those two hunks over there. They've been watching us ever since we came in." Mina cajoled. 

Not that she was very much interested but because Mina's attitude seemed to indicate that she wanted Rei to check them out, she obliged her by discreetly shifting her eye to her right. Two men dressed casually in what were most probably designer wear, were sitting two tables away from them. They looked and dressed enough alike to be either mistaken as twins or brothers. 

"Aren't they cute?" Mina's eyes shone with a secret delight. 

Rei cast another glance at the pair. Young, eager looking faces with sandy brown hair and soft brown eyes they looked like puppies to her. 

"They look like they're hardly old enough to shave." She murmured under her breath.

Mina lifted her napkin and discreetly muffled the reflexive laughter. "Yes but puppies can be adorable too." Mina pointed out as if reading her mind.

She caught the look of one of the guys and gave him a slight smile and a nod with her head in a gesture of hello.

"Until they start hanging around you twenty four seven." Rei muttered with annoyance and recalled those pesky admirers back home that always seemed to hang around her with flowers, chocolate, balloons or love letters and never getting a hint that she wanted to be left alone. 

"Hey if he's adorable enough I don't mind." Mina told her with a grin and popped a piece of carrot into her mouth. 

Rei rolled her eyes. "Well if they do decide to work up the courage to come over," there was some activity in the background that told her that the guys were debating their next move, "then you can have both of them."

Mina was quiet for a while and looked all the world like she was actually toying with the idea before shaking her head with a slight regret. "Nah, I think I'll just settle for the blonde one. He's cuter with his dimple."

They both looked brown haired to her. How Mina could claim one of them was blonde was beyond her comprehension but Rei refrained from voicing her opinion. The last thing she wanted to talk about right now was men. She had enough problems as it was. 

Thinking about her father brought an unconscious scowl to her face. She glanced at the purse which was lying next to her. Her father's letter was in there along with the key. She stuffed them there but she had no idea what to do with them later. Maybe she would know more when she visits Ridgeway's office on Monday. The man had informed her there were some formalities involved that they needed to clear up. 

"Ok what exactly did Marcus give you to put a scowl on your face?" Mina demanded suddenly I can't bear the suspense any longer. Surely it can't be that bad." 

"Tell that to the Holden's." Rei muttered under her breath.

Her arm was still stinging from Frederic's grip and no doubt it was going to turn into a lovely bruise later. 

Mina's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Ok now you really got me hooked. What did Marcus give you?" She asked. 

Curiosity was eating at her. When Gramps had asked her to give Rei a ride, her mind had been too busy with the shooting she was going to have in a few days to pay much attention to the reason behind the request. She figured Rei probably got sick and tired of the place and wanted to leave and who could blame her? The Holdens were very nice people once they accept you but they could also be very unpleasant too if they put their minds to it. Obviously there was more behind the request than she had initially thought.

"Well." She demanded when Rei kept quiet. 

Rei clenched her teeth. She looked like she was struggling with something. 

"Come on, the suspense is killing me here." Mina pleaded. 

Rei shook her head. "I'm not so sure. After all you're close to Holdens and I still need a ride back." She tried to make it sound like a joke but there was a certain truth it behind it too.

"Oh come on." Mina nearly wailed, frustration clearly laced in her tone. "That's not fair. I'm giving you a ride after all. Besides," she added with a sniff. "I always keep my promise."

Rei was silent for another moment and eyed her suspiciously. "If I tell you, you promise you won't give me grief about it later?"

"Yes. Yes. Yes. Now tell me." The blonde looked like she was about to jump on her chair any minute now.

Rei took a deep breath as she mentally steeled herself and told her. The fork clattered on to the plate with a ringing sound from Mina's limp fingers. Blue eyes stared at her.

Rei felt her heart plummet to her feet. She knew it was a mistake to tell her. Why hadn't she listen to her instincts and just kept her mouth shut?

She mentally went over how much cash she carried. She wondered if it was enough to pay for a cab to take her back to the city. Either that or she would have to be forced to use the cell Nate gave her and call for the driver to pick her up. She really hated taking advantage of her friendship with Mako like that. Nate might be loaded, but it didn't feel right to make use of his property just because she was his wife's friend. 

Rei let out a soundless sigh. Then again she didn't suppose she had a choice now.

She eyed Mina, who was still sitting like a statue. Well the acquaintance had been pleasant even if brief. It was really too bad. She had begun to like the woman and for her it was a rare thing since she didn't normally open up to strangers that quickly. But there had been something special about Mina, the way they had connected that had told her that given time they might have become good friends. 

"Well." Rei cleared her throat. "I suppose it's time for me to leave now." 

Her voice seemed to bring Mina back from whatever place she had mentally gone to. Blinking her eyes owlishly, she breathed. "Wow, he must have really felt guilty."

The hand that had been reaching for her purse stilled. "What do you mean?" Rei asked quietly.

Mina looked up and met her eyes. There was a different quality in those blue eyes now, instead of merriment there was a seriousness there that caught Rei by surprise. The look in her eyes, gave a totally different depth to her character, suddenly she didn't seem like a bubbly and slightly ditzy blonde.

"He gave you the company, didn't he? Well ten percent if you must be technical and all, but it's all he had. And he gave them to _you_. The only reason I could think of was that he must have felt bad about the way he neglected you." Mina's eyes turned soft. "He must have cared for you after all." 

Rei wanted to tell Mina about the letter but anger made her say something else instead. "Guilt is not the same as caring."

"Actually I think it is." Mina disagreed. "You see guilt is just another manifestation of our feelings. If you don't care then you won't feel guilt either. It's a simple as that. Somebody who lacks those feelings wouldn't even bother to feel guilt. It might not be love, but trust me it's better than nothing." She wore a slight lopsided smile on her face but there was a certain sad quality in them that made Rei wondering if Mina was speaking out of some personal experience. 

Rei never did get the chance to ask her since Mina's next comment made the question disappear from her mind. "At least that explains the picture."

Rei frowned. "What picture?"

Mina smiled and picked up her purse. She pulled out a small picture from her Fendi and handed it to Rei who took it slowly. The picture was only five by ten inches in size but she recognized it immediately. It was the picture her grandfather took of her on her high school graduation. She hadn't realized her grandfather had sent the picture to her father. The latter had been in busy preparing for his election for Congress to attend. 

"Martin found the picture above the mantle piece in the cabin in Vermont. Marcus loved the place." Mina murmured. "He often used that cabin when he wanted some peace and quiet. It was like a second home to him."

He kept a picture of her. Rei didn't know what to make of it. She told herself it was nothing to be so happy about but she couldn't help it. The news did make her happy. Could Mina be right? Did her father really care?

"Anyways, since it's obvious you're not going to be finishing your meal how about we hit the road again?" Mina suggested.

Rei nodded her head in agreement. Mina signaled for the waiter. 

They were just getting to leave when the two men that had been eyeing them finally worked up the courage to make their move and approached them.

Rei groaned inwardly and even more so when she saw the glee in Mina's eyes. 

"Hey there. My cousin and I were just wondering if you would care to have a drink with us." One of them, the one with the dimple that Mina had been eyeing said.

Mina glanced at the table where they just left their half empty glasses. "I think the evidence speaks for itself."

He gave a sheepish smile. "Well then how about if we make it tonight then." He suggested. "The names Travis, Travis Milbank and this is my cousin David Milbank." 

The other man in question gave a goofy smile. The way David was eyeing her, Rei had a suspicion that they both already made arrangements on who was to hit on who before they approached them. Great, just what she needed another pompous ass sniffing at her. It was easy enough to see that these two came from privileged backgrounds and most probably never had a greater worry in their life than what to entertain themselves with the next day. 

Well if Mina was going to waste her time on these fools, she could do it on her own. 

"Mina, I'm going to get something at the store next door. I'll meet you by the car." Rei told her after the introduction has been made by Mina. With a parting nod towards the two men, Rei left the restaurant. 

It was windy outside and feeling drawn to the water, Rei decided to take a detour by the wooden walkway that had been built alongside the beach. The air was crisp and alleviating. The sound of the rushing sea and the cries of the seagulls above were soothing. Despite the fact that the wind was pulling at her hair and clothes, she took her time as she walked along the path. There was hardly anyone outside, partly due to the darkness in the sky that promised rain if not even storm. The situation suited her, since she preferred solitude to a crowd. A picturesque place like this no doubt drew a lot of tourism on a sunny day. 

Rei glanced down at the photo which she was still holding in her hand. It fluttered in the wind making it seem like the girl on the picture was winking back at the gazer. 

She still didn't know what to make out of all of this. He gave her his most prized passion. He kept her photo. Was she supposed to look upon it as good or bad? Any other father would have kept his daughter's photo in his wallet, home or office, which he obviously didn't. Yet the place it was kept wasn't just any place either. According to Mina it was his second home. Was his disinterest in her just a show? One he kept to please the members of his family? Could a small part of him really care? Was that why he apologized to her? 

Rei leaned against the railing and stared off into the horizon. Of everything that has happened today, the thing that bothered her the most, was his apology. She couldn't help to shake away the feeling that he wanted to say more but he couldn't. 

Rei didn't get the chance to delve into those thoughts as Mina decided to call her then. She hurriedly returned to the car where Mina was waiting with Travis and David. Mina was already sitting behind the wheel and while the engine was on she and Travis seemed to be in deep discussion it didn't seem like they would leave anytime soon. 

David gave Rei a wide smile when she came nearer.

"Hey." He said and smoothly moved to block her from opening the door on the passenger side. 

Rei gave him an annoyed look. 

"Yes?" 

Undaunted by the lack of encouragement on her part he gave off a confident smile. "Say, Travis and your friend are making plans for tomorrow. If you give me your number we can make it a double date."

Rei tilted her head to the side as if contemplating the thought. "How about we do this instead? You call me in about ten years or so when you've learned to shave without nicking yourself first?" She suggested silkily and stared pointedly at his chin, before smoothly sidestepping him and disappearing into the car.

Mina was staring at her with her jaws falling but at one pointed look from Rei she quickly loosened the handbrake, flashed Travis a winning smile and drove off. 

"I can't believe you just said that to him." Mina said in amazement after a few minutes of driving in silence. 

Rei gave an indifferent shrug "Why give the poor boy any false hope?"

"Yes but did you see the way he looked? You totally crushed his pride."

"He'll live. Trust me male with egos like his always bounce back in seconds and moves on to another pair of legs with a skirt."

"You don't seem to have much of an opinion of men." The amusement lacing her voice took away the edge of her statement. 

Rei flicked a strand of hair over her shoulder. "I just don't believe in wasting my time with losers." She eyed Mina under her long lashes. "So are you really making friends with the cousin?"

Mina shrugged. "I haven't decided yet. He did have contacts to get him into the Vulcano, which is like the hottest place on Manhattan right now. The queue line is minimum 4 hours, plus he's cute in a puppy sort of way." 

Rei rolled her eyes. "If you're so fond of puppies then why don't you get a real one?" 

Mina shook her head. "Tried that once but they're overly fond of chewing my shoes or baptizing them. It was a choice of the puppy or my shoes." 

Rei glanced down at the electric blue sandals Mina wore. The strap was thin and there were some feathers and glitter in them. Mina had managed to change from the chic looking black ones she had worn earlier today. 

"So where shall I drop you off?"

"If it's not too much bother just drop me off outside Grand Central. My hotel isn't that far away."

Mina waved her hand dismissively. "Nonsense. Just tell me which hotel you're staying at and I'll drop you off outside. If I can give you a ride from Greenwich a few hundred feet or so won't matter."

Rei smiled slightly. She didn't know why but there was a cheerfulness in Mina that was contagious. When talking to her, she could actually feel her spirit lift. 

"Very well then. I'm staying at Caesar's."

"Nice choice. I've never stayed there myself since the only one in this country is situated here but I hear its one of the best. Then again for a minimum of three hundred dollars a night it has to be."

Rei let out a small squeak. "Three hundred dollars?"

"Yeah. It's a five star hotel."

She was going to kill Nathan. Comfortable and recently priced indeed. No wonder the service was so good. If she had to pay three hundred dollars a night it had better be serviceable to a queen! She's already stayed for four days that was twelve hundred dollars! That was over hundred and thirty thousand yen! It's approximately as much as what she made a month and she blew all away in less than a week!

"Maybe I should try it out one of these days. I hear their food is exquisite and maybe I'll get a chance to get a glimpse of the owner. I've never meet Nathan Maxfield personally but if he's anything like the magazines shows I'm sure I'm going to enjoy it. Talk about yummie." Mina continued talking not noticing Rei's shocked silence.

Nathan owned the place! No wonder they had reacted so weirdly at the reception during check-in. Mortification washed over her to be quickly replaced by anger at the realization of her being outmaneuvered by a man. That… that slick arrogant pompous rich ass! How dare he go behind her back and arrange things like that when she specifically told him she wanted to make it on her own. 

Rei scowled darkly. 

"Mina," she interrupted Mina as she continued to describe all the wondrous things she had heard about the place and the man himself. There was a certain light in her eyes that told her she was slightly infatuated. "Do you know any cheap hotels with reasonably good quality? Like say fifty to maximum hundred dollars a night."

Mina frowned. "Well that's a little beyond my location of expertise. Price has never been the deciding factor when I stay at a place."

No of course not, Rei should have realized it too. Considering what she wore and drove in, Rei could see that money was never a matter of concern for Mina. She sighed inwardly. She'd have to deal with it herself then. Maybe Ami could find something for her through the net. 

"I'm sure I can ask around. Though why do you want to know?" Mina looked at her curiously. 

Rei blew out her breath. "It seems my friend and I had a little misunderstanding about the price. When I asked him for a reasonably priced hotel he seemed to have gone after his own standard. Our opinion of expensive, shall we say, differs greatly. All in all, I can't afford to continue staying in a place like Caesar's."

"Well I don't see any problems with that." Mina pointed out.

Annoyance flickered in Rei's eyes. No of course not, she had plenty of money so she never had to worry about. 

"Why don't you just use the condo Marcus gave you?" Mina suggested.

Rei blinked. Shame filled her for the nasty thoughts she had about Mina and shock staggered her as she realized what Mina just said. 

"But I can't do that."

"And why not?" Mina gave a pretty scowl and turned to face her. 

Rei's eyes widened. "Mina look out!" She cried out.

With a vague look Mina turned her attention back to the road and quickly swerved to the side to avoid crashing in to the car in front of them. She had to quickly brake and swerve back again to avoid the approaching car. It took a few minutes before the angry honking, shouting and tires screeching quieted down and they could continue with their journey. 

"Well, I'm still waiting." Mina demanded.

Rei still patting her racing heart after the incident glanced at the blonde. She was looking cool and serene like nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Rei was getting a nasty suspicion as to the identity of the person Jay had been talking to earlier; the one who had her car towed away.

Because Mina was tapping her foot rather impatiently, Rei decided to please her quickly before they ended up in another near death experience. 

"I don't feel comfortable moving in there."

"But why? Marcus gave you the place so obviously it was meant for you to live there if not permanently then at least partially whenever you're in town. What good will it do to have a condo lying around empty? The place is yours, you have every right to use it."

Rei shook her head. "I don't think the Holdens would agree with that."

Mina waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "You shouldn't bother too much of what others think." 

Looking at her Rei couldn't help but to give off a small laugh.

"Now you sound just like your brother." 

This time it was Mina who was caught by surprise as she blinked her eyes. "You've met Jay?"

They passed a place where a car accident seemed to have just transpired. Curious at the scene, Rei craned her neck to get a better view while she absently answered. 

"Mmm. He gave me a ride to the church today."

"Oh did he..." Mina said cryptically and eyed her with a speculative look which Rei missed. 

~ o ~ 

The phone rang several times. For each signal the man held his breath and waited in suspense. 

It was quiet in the house, everyone had gone to sleep and night was slowly creeping away to be replaced by the first rays of sunlight. The old grandfather clock ticked ominously by the corner. 

When the other end finally answered, relief flooded through his body as he nearly sighed. 

"Yes." Came the curt answer.

"I'm afraid things didn't go exactly as planned." The man spoke softly into his cell phone to keep his voice down.. 

There was as short harsh curse on the other end. "What do you mean?"

"A slight miscalculation." He quickly went over the details of what had transpired earlier today.

"Why weren't I informed about this? You were supposed to make sure that any changes made in the will were to be reported to me."

The man winced slightly, there was no mistaking the threatening tone in his voice. Cold sweat slid down his spine. Along with the dread came also the anger. "You tell me. I wasn't supposed to be the one following him."

"Do not worry about that." The voice on the other end had said in a dismissive tone. "I'll deal with him later. Just make sure she doesn't find out anything." 

"I've already had his place searched thoroughly. If he had some kind of proof. It died with him." The man pointed out. It required some effort on his part to hide the annoyance from showing in his voice. He had learned a long time ago that when dealing with his contact any show of emotions got him nowhere. 

"I'm not about to take my chances on that. There's too much at stake here. Find out what's in that letter and if she shows signs of being as interfering as her father then we'll send her to join him."

The audible click on the other side and the dead tone told him that his contact had hung up. Slowly he let the arm holding his cell phone slide down to fall limply to his side. Sweat was beading his forehead and he never sweated.

Then again he has never been in this kind of situation before either. Things were becoming more and more complicated. Now they were talking about murdering people too. And from the sound of things it wasn't their first either. Murder had never part of the deal to begin with. 

He made silent groan when he realized that Marcus' death had indeed not been an accident. He had now turned from traitor into murderer. The worst part was he knew if he didn't find a way to stop the girl from continuing with her father's inquisitive digging, there was no way he could stop them from getting rid of her too. He was already too deeply involved. If the truth got out it would be his downfall.

His hand shook slightly as he reached out to open the door and headed back to his room. 

It was time to make some plans. 

* * *

Author's note: Yepp even more intrigues coming. So who's the traitor? And was Marcus' death really an accident or murder? Well I guess you won't find out until we reach the end of this story. =) We're one third through now so I hope you'll have the patience to stick with me 'til the end. 

My warmest thanks to all of you readers and especially the reviewers. I'm glad you're enjoying the story. 

And to Lady Mischief and icicle7, good guess! I ought to award you with the next chapter but unfortunately I've only managed to type one page so far. =( As for Zoicite I'm afraid he'll probably only make a brief cameo role in this story. Don't worry he'll have a larger role in the Mina's story. 

// Fenix 


	9. An eventful morning

** Chapter 9: An eventful morning **

By Lady Fenix 

_ Say what you my about Madame, but if there's one thing she is that is fiercely protective of those she considers hers. She and I might not get along but I do admire that lioness trait in her and Lord help the poor fool who thinks otherwise._

_                                                                                 From the personal journal of Sakura Hino Holden _

"Here you go, Miss Hino. Box number 1267." The clerk said and stepped back with his ever present service smile. 

"Thank you." Rei murmured and looked at him. 

The clerk's smile began to faze slightly when she didn't say anything but waited. His brow rose slightly in confusion. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" He inquired with a pained expression.

"You could give me back my passport." Rei suggested and nodded towards the small book in his hand.

"Oh yes, silly me. Here you go." The clerk's laugh sounded forced as he handed her back the passport. 

"Thank you." Rei took the passport and stuffed it back into her bag. She thought she managed well to keep the annoyance from showing in her voice. Getting in to the vault where her father kept his safety box had turned into a hassle that had taken nearly half an hour to settle. 

"You can leave now." She told him when he just kept standing there. Ok, so maybe she wasn't good at hiding her annoyance.

The man blushed and cleared his throat. "Yes of course. If you need any help don't hesitate to contact us at the desk, Miss Hino. Once again we are sorry for taking your time."

It was by sheer force of will that Rei kept herself from tapping her foot in impatience. While she might understand the procedure it didn't mean she had to like it, especially when she was already pressed for time. 

Rei glanced at her watch. Quarter past twelve. She had forty five minutes before she had to be at the Holden building to meet Martin. She sighed. For someone who had the entire morning to finish the errand her father had sent her on, she was certainly running out of time. She really hated bureaucracy. 

Taking out the key her father had given her, Rei looked at the box the clerk had indicated. It was not large; in fact it belonged to the smallest group of safety boxes in the vault. Pulling out the plastic containment, which hardly weighted anything, Rei sat down by one of the tables and emptied it out: a white envelope, a folder and a disc. Her eyes lit up as she saw the envelope and brief hope flickered in her violet eyes at the possibility that Marcus might have left her  more specific information of just exactly it was that he wanted her to do. The hope vanished quickly when she picked up the envelope and felt its content however. It was something hard, something metallic and heavy. Her heart sank. Not another key!

Her fingers dug inside and her heart lurched when she touched the item. Slowly she pulled out the object and held it up. Her heart was beating rapidly as she looked at the golden band. The smooth surface of the ring caught the cold light from the florescent lamp above and changed it to warm golden color. While the band was plain on the outside, delicate inscriptions were carefully wrought on the inside and a lump formed in Rei's throat when she read the words: _Sakura, my heart and my happiness._

It was a twin to the one Rei had in her jewelry box at the shrine back home. The one that said: _Marcus, my love and my life._

As Rei stared at the golden light reflected from the ring, a vision came to her. It was inside the very same church where her father's funeral service had been held just a few days ago. Through the muted golden hues created by the thousands of lit candles in the church, she could see the people filling the benches on either side of the aisle from the entrance of the church all the way up to the altar, staring at the couple kneeling in front of the priest. A sense of expectation, an air of joy, a whisper of promise hung in the air, created by the spectators as well as the hymn playing in the background.

As the bride and groom moved to face each other, Rei could see and recognize the faces of the couple that had graced the wedding album Rhonda had given her. The man, handsome as sin in his dark tuxedo and without the harsh lines that later adorned his face, was looking down at his bride with intensity in his violet eyes. He spoke softly with a solemn air as he placed a slim golden band on her finger. The woman, dressed in a traditional white wedding gown, looked so young with her face radiating with happiness as she gazed dreamily at her husband to-be. Wearing her heart on her sleeve she gave her vows and placed the very familiar looking heavy gold ring on his finger. 

Their hands met and their fingers intertwining with each other. The two wedding bands were placed so closed it looked like they were melded together, forming the symbol of eternity.

_Bang!_

Rei jerked. The vision shattered like pieces of glass into million shards and once again she was back in the starkly painted white walls of the vault. Staring over her shoulder Rei saw the very same clerk that had followed her in, escort an elderly couple through the thick special made glass door that led to the vault. The trio disappeared around the corner into the next aisle but the magical moment was already broken.

Blinking owlishly Rei stared at the ring in her hand. The ring felt cold to her touch, cold and dead like the material it was made of but she could have sworn that a while ago it had burned in her hand. 

The sound of approaching footsteps and talk stopped any further thoughts of the ring. Without a thought, Rei clasped it and let it drop in to the pocket of her jacket as she looked over her shoulder. The couple that had just been let it, walked around the corner. The woman was telling her husband to walk faster as she supported his arm. When she saw Rei she stopped with her admonishing to flash a smile before resuming her nagging once more. The man walking slowly with a cane and his wife as support listened, rather good-naturedly in Rei's opinion, to the whole nagging before reassuring her in a gentle tone that they would make it to lunch with the children.

A pang of longing hit Rei as she saw their exchange. She thought about her parents and she thought about herself and wondered briefly. 

Shaking her head she pulled herself together. The couple's conversation just reminded her that she was running out of time. She lifted her arm and glanced at the silver watch on her wrist. 

Twelve forty. 

She's been in the vault for twenty five minutes. It didn't leave her much time before she needed to meet Martin at the Holden building. 

Rei glanced at the two other contents left in the box. She let the floppy disc drop into the same pocket as where she had put ring and picked up the folder. She was about to put it down in her bag but hesitated. She knew she was cutting short on time and yet curiosity ate at her. 

She looked at the beige folder. It was thick and slightly heavy telling her that there was bound to be a lot of information there. 

Her small teeth worked nervously and unconsciously over a delicately shaped full bottom lip as she silently debated. 

In the end curiosity won over and she flipped over the cover. 

A frown marred her delicate feature as she flipped through the papers. Most were clippings from newspapers, articles as well as photos but there were also some notes in her father's neat handwriting. Not that she could make out what they meant since he wrote in codes. One name caught her eyes immediately and not just because it had been highlighted. Maxfield. Along with it was the logo that quite resembled the one Nate used for his companies.    

The more she briefed the papers the more confused Rei got. It seems her father had been doing some investigation of some kind and she had a large suspicion that this folder was strongly connected to why he left her his shares. Her job it seemed had just gone up several levels in difficulty and it was not something that she would be wrapping up at the end of this week as she had so confidently told Ami and Mako.

Cursing her lack of time, Rei stuffed the folder into her bag and left the bank. Her foul mood turned even worse when she wasn't able to hail down a cab. Trust her father to pick the bank located at the most trafficked street on Manhattan. The smell of pretzels, coffee and pizza coming from the food stands only reminded her ravenous stomach that she had skipped lunch and from the way things were looking she wasn't going to have time to get one now. And as she hurried up the street heading towards the ivory black tower gleaming ahead, her mood didn't improve as she was jostled by the crowd of people on their way from one end to another not caring in the least. She might have been of tiny stature but from the way she was being pushed around she nearly thought herself invisible. She finally lost her temper when a man dressed in a business suit and carrying a briefcase that felt like it weighted a ton rammed into her. Vigorous training helped her from completely loosing her balance and fall on her butt but she still wasn't fast enough to avoid the man's arms. 

"Watch where you're going jerk!" Rei snapped and slapped aside his helping hand from her arm.

One glance at her glaring eyes and the man quickly mumbled an apology. 

"Take a note, the people walking on the street are not bowling pins for you to knock down." Rei retorted angrily rubbing her hip where his briefcase had hit her but the man had already backed away and gotten swallowed by the crowd. Other passersby cast looks at her, one Asian woman holding her daughter's hand muttered 'crazy half-breed' in Japanese and dragged her daughter closer to her as if fearing contamination. 

Rei scowled. Slinging her bag over her shoulder she continued to head towards her destination. 

If the street outside has been chaos, the same could certainly not be said about the inside of Holden Tower's. The moment Rei entered the building a hush seemed to fall over the grand reception hall and she could feel a lot of eyes swivel towards her. 

For the first time Rei was happy to have been born different enough to have earned a lot of stares and whispers as she grew up, at least it had toughened her enough to let her appear as if she wasn't bothered by it. Her face was cool and composed when she walked towards the reception desk.

"Hello. I'm Rei Hino." Her eyes caught the photo or rather the familiar face on the magazine on the desk and her voice shifted slightly. "I'm here to see Mr. Martin Holden." 

"Ah yes Miss Hino." The woman smiled brightly and discreetly reached out and quickly flipped the magazine upside down. "Mr. Holden has given instructions. Would you like someone to show you up?"

"No I can find my way. Thank you." Rei replied with a tight smile. 

Mina had warned her about it and even Jay had indicated something like this might happen but coming upon her own face on the glossy pages of a magazine still came as a shock. 

Rei didn't know if it was due to her newly acquired knowledge that made her oversensitive but it felt to her like the elevator seemed extremely full this time as she rode up to the top. Having never liked being in a crowd the ride seemed to take an exasperatingly long time and when she finally reached her destination Rei's mood had turned sour enough that she didn't even care as she pushed her way through the group of bodies to the get out on her floor. 

"Ah Rei, there you are. I was afraid you wouldn't come." Martin walking down the hallway greeted her the moment she stepped out of the elevator. 

Resting his hands on her arms he pulled her closer and gently kissed her on the cheeks. 

"Uh hello, Martin." Despite his openness to her, the familiarity still felt weird. 

"Have you had lunch yet?" He asked and gave her a concerned look. 

Rei brushed her hair behind her ear. "No as a matter of fact. I ran out of time."

Martin gave her a beaming smile which would have looked quite dazzling if it weren't for the darkness in his eyes. "Enjoying the sights, are we? That's good."

Rei smiled briefly but withheld from commenting on anything. 

"Since I haven't had time yet to eat either, how about we take a late lunch together? There's a lovely French restaurant right around the corner that I'm sure you would like."

He took her lightly by the elbow and started to lead her towards the elevator but a dark voice called out just then halting them. 

Turning Rei watched a tall lean dark haired man approach them. Despite the fact that he was near the other side of the hallway, the man didn't make the appearance of hurrying to reach them. With one hand tucked in the pocket of his black khaki pants, he struck quite an arrogant pose as he walked down the narrow hallway in his black turtleneck and purple jacket. The impression of arrogance only increased as he came close enough for Rei to take a good look at his features: bold aristocratic nose, strong jaw, sensual lips with just a hint of a smile or a sneer promising to break out and dark enigmatic blue eyes that somehow made Rei think of wizards and dragons in fairy tales. 

The moment she felt those eyes touch hers, something fizzle inside her, like the touch of electricity.  

"Sorry to cut in like this, but Madame would like to speak with you." The newcomer told Martin. 

Martin frowned and glanced at Rei. "Did she tell you what it was about?"

The promised smile broke out. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Martin hesitated.

"I wouldn't suggest letting her wait too long if I were you. Terrence just got out of her office looking like a thundercloud and you know how her mood is after one of _those_ encounters." The younger man spoke again. "If it's any consolation I don't think it would be that long, she has that meeting with the Candelle's at two."

The silence stretched out, becoming awkward. Knowing the source of his delay, Rei decided to speak up. "It's okay, why don't I wait in your office while you go talk to her?" 

Martin's features didn't change but she could feel the tension leaving his body. She felt slightly touched and annoyed by it. Touched because he truly was looking out for her and annoyed because she couldn't understand how someone at his age could still be so afraid of his mother. The woman must be a real tyrant to inspire this kind of fear.

"Do you remember the way?" Martin asked.

Before Rei could reply, the stranger spoke up. "I'm on my way back to the den. Why don't I just go with her? By the way, the names Darien, Darien Shields." 

He offered a hand. 

"Rei, Rei Hino." She reached out and accepted his. His hold was strong and firm. The calluses she felt surprised her however since it didn't really fit with the look of well manicured hands. __

"This way, Miss Hino." Darien indicated with his hand for her to precede him. 

"I'll see you in a short while." Martin told her right before he left. 

Rei nodded her in agreement and turned to walk up down the hallway towards what were now becoming familiar surroundings for her. 

"Is this your first visit the city?" 

Glancing at her companion, Rei tried to read his face and gauge his intention. There was nothing but sincerity there. Either he was a very good actor or he was just plain ignorant of the situation between her and the rest of the Holden clan. Something told her that the first was more plausible than the latter, he didn't strike her as an ignorant man; dangerous would be more fitting. Instead of slicing him in two with a cutting remark, Rei decided to play along to see where it lead. 

"No, but since I was only a kid the last time I was here and I can hardly remember anything."

"And what's your impression of the city so far?"

Rei stopped for a moment to think. "Pulsating with life and impatience. Rude, curious and exciting." They stopped in front of the closed door leading to Marcus' office. Rei looked up at Darien and gave him a fleeting smile. "I like it lot."

A slow answering smile spread from his face making her breath catch in her throat at the devastating effect it made of his already handsome face.  "That's New York for you. You either hate it or love it. There's hardly anything in between. I'm glad it was the latter for you." He told her before turning the handle on the door and swinging it open.

"Oh?" One dark brow arched slightly. "And why is that?"

"It means you'll stay longer and I know Martin for once would like that."

"He's probably the only one then." Rei murmured quietly and entered the office. 

She was surprised when instead of leaving Darien followed her in and closed the door behind him, though she was careful of not letting it show. 

"Look," he said, his eyes suddenly somber, "I know this might come out strangely but take it from someone who has been there before. Whatever happens, don't let them intimidate you, especially Madame. If you let them see how uncomfortable they make you then it'll only encourage more of the same treatment. Trust me the only thing the Holden's respect is spunk."

Rei cooked her head slightly to the side. "Why are you giving me this advice?" She asked after a moment of silence. "We only just met. Compared to the Holdens I'm just a stranger to you." Her eyes studied him curiously. 

Darien stared at her and blinked as if the question had caught him off guard. Lifting one hand he rubbed his neck with a chagrined smile on his face. "Honestly?" When she nodded her head slowly, he let out his breath with a sigh. "I don't know. It just felt right. I suppose its coz I've been in your shoes, well not exactly in your shoes as in something akin to it, and I guess I can empathize with you. It's never a nice feeling having to be treated like an unwanted outsider."

There was a slight darkening look in Darien's eyes that told Rei that he was recalling a painful memory and the suspicion she had felt earlier slowly ebbed away to be replaced by sympathy. Her experience with the Holden's might be short but something told her that they were very good in making people suffer when they put their mind to it and no doubt Darien had experienced that first hand too. 

"Well your advice is duly noted. And thank you." Rei gave him a fleeting smile to take away the sting from her earlier behavior. 

She got a fleeting smile in reply. Just then their eyes met and Rei could almost swear she felt a click at the back of her head, a slight invisible bond that took place between two strangers that shared something in common. 

It was also just then that the door suddenly swung open and a very familiar voice said, "Hey Martin, I just got the fax you forwarded to me and you have just got to be kidding. There's no way –" 

Jay looked up from the piece of paper and stopped his tirade when his blue gaze caught the sight of the two of them. 

A quick look at their faces and gauging the mood in the room, he quickly came to a nagging conclusion that did not sit well with him. Especially since neither of the occupants said a word to break the silence.

"Am I disturbing anything?" He asked with a pleasant smile. 

Darien whom had known him for years, wasn't fooled by that smile. "No not that all. Rei and I were just getting to know each other while we waited for Martin to get back."

"Which might take a while considering where he went." Rei murmured. 

He and Rei shared a secret smile that had Jay's eyes narrowing. 

Blissfully unaware of his mood, Rei kept her attention still focused on Darien. "If you have work to get back to, please don't let me keep you."

Darien waved his hand into the air. "Nothing pressing that can't wait. Where were you heading for lunch?"

"Somewhere down the corner. A French restaurant."

"Ah yes Le Claire. Good choice, one of the best in the city. Do try out their shrimp."

The two of them continued to talk seeming completely oblivious to Jay's presence much to his annoyance. Neither could have been further from the truth however. 

While he kept the conversation flowing part of Darien was very much aware of the heat pouring out of his friend behind him and he had a hard time keeping back the grin he felt. So much for claiming disinterest in the girl. While Rei did look different from the usual women that caught Jay's interest, he had to admit there was something about that exotic beauty of hers. 

For Rei's part she was being overly attentive to Darien in hopes that Jay would find it boring and leave. If truth was to be told, she really didn't know how to deal with him after the awkward situation that happened during the reading of the will and he had gotten into a fight because of her. With no parents around and a grandfather the way he was, she had always had to fight her own battles and even if there had been a few occasions when someone had to step in and fight for her, those had been women. She never had a man do her fighting before. Mako claimed it was because of the mature and collective appearance she gave, making men think that she was capable of handling anything herself. Whatever the reason Rei really didn't know how to handle it. Was she supposed to thank him? Or maybe just ignore it? The latter sounded more appealing to her since the first might lead to the awkward question like what she was going to do with her inheritance, a question that Mina had already asked. 

Unfortunately for her it seems fate has something else in mind for her as just then Darien's cell phone started to buzz. Excusing himself he picked up the phone and Rei was amazed when she saw the polite face change to a beaming schoolboy's when he picked up on the person on the other end. 

"Hold on, baby." Shifting his cell phone away he gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry guys, taking a private five. I'll see you around, Rei." Giving his friend a hearty slap on the upper arm on his way out, he closed the door after him with a silly grin on his face, nodding and making agreeing noise to whatever it was that the person on the other end said.

Rei was stupefied, even Nate whom she knew loved Mako to death, didn't wear that silly grin when he spoke with her on the phone. She hadn't thought there even existed a man who could love a woman that way, but clearly she had been wrong. 

She felt a strange wistful tug in the region of her heart.

"Well the two of you seemed to get a long very well." Jay observed.

Her mind still wrapped around the strange phenomenon she had just seen, Rei answered absently, "Uh-huh." 

Maybe her parent's failed marriage had scarred her far more than she had realized, maybe not all men were like her father, or maybe she just had a too naïve view of what love was. She thought about the wedding band that currently rested in the pocket of her jacket and the meaning behind it.

The sudden shadow falling over her had her startled. Looking up she was surprised to see Jay studying her. 

"You know," he began in a pleasant conversational tone, "that he's engaged right?"

"Huh?" Her dark brows furrowed at the strange change of topic.

"That call just now, that's from his fiancée, Serena Kent."

Oh so Darien was engaged to that blonde with the angelic features. Well it would take somebody special to put that kind of a smile on the face of such a man, and from the little she had seen of Serena Kent, something told her that indeed that woman was one of a kind. Still she didn't understand what Jay's point was, a thought which she voiced.

The smile he gave her back was feral and had alarms bell ringing at the back of her mind. "I understand you reaction." He continued as if not having heard her question, "actually it's quite ordinary, from what I can remember Dare always did have that effect on women. But trust me, love. You're only setting yourself up for heartache."

Emotions rolled over her: shock, outrage and amusement, all three washed over her like waves in a stormy sea. In the end it was amusement that won and her lips pulled slightly to the side. "Looking out for me, are we? I thought your grandfather was the one that had been appointed as my guardian." 

The look he gave her had her smile faltering and her heart stuttering. It was a very direct look that pierced her straight to the heart. And when he spoke the velvet tone of his voice had her pulse spiking.

"Love, if it's attention you want why don't you just say so and I'll consider obliging."

Shock had her momentarily speechless as she stared at him with her lips slightly parted. His heavy lidded eyes spoke of a sensual promise but there was a slight merriment there as well as he watched her reaction. Seeing the latter had the anger rising and with anger replacing shock, she was also able to regain her ability of speech. 

"What do you mean by that?" She demanded though she was still annoyed that it came out more like a squawk rather than the intended affronted tone.  

He didn't reply. Instead he stared at her for a very long time. The touch of his gaze fell on her like the feathery stroke of heat, making her more aware than ever before that she was a woman and the fact that they were actually very much alone in a deserted office. 

When his eyes lowered to linger on her lips, Rei could feel her pulse picking up in speed. Her breath caught in her throat. Suddenly being very well aware of the dryness of her lips and the fact that she had left them unpainted this morning, she let the tip of her tongue run across the surface all the while feeling his eyes following her movement like a hawk's. 

He began to move closer. The space between them slowly disappeared, inch by inch. Her mind told her body to back away. Her body had a different opinion and stayed where it was. She could feel her heart beating more rapidly. What was this feeling she was experiencing? Panic? Anticipation?

The very air seemed to shimmer. 

Jay stopped a hairsbreadth before their body touched. He met her eyes, his daring her to move. In defiance she stayed where she was even while the small voice in her head told her it was a big mistake. Right before she closed her eyes, she could see the yearning as well as the mirth touching his eyes. With her vision gone all she could do was feel and feel she did. The edge of his coat touched her, the hard fabric teasing the sensitive skin on the back of her hands. She felt his breath fanning her face. A shiver ran through her and she waited for what she knew was the inevitable even as the voice in her head shouted like a banshee telling her to stop him. 

The kiss never came. Instead she heard him whisper. "Stick around and maybe you'll find."  

Opening eyes she saw his lanky form saunter off towards the door, stopping long enough to throw her a cocky grin before he disappeared into the hallway. 

Rei growled under her breath and threw her bag against the door. The black rucksack hit the wooden wall giving off a sound that was not the least of bit as satisfying as she would have liked, before it fell in a heap on the carpeted floor. 

The nerve of the man! To think she had actually thought him pleasant a few days ago. It was a wonder anybody could be in the same room with him with that arrogance. The fact that she was feeling slightly breathless was blamed on the anger she was working out. As for the disappointment, well she buried it deep, deep within herself. 

Men like Jay Arlington only reminded her why she didn't date that often. Like the saying went, two's company and three's a crowd. And men and their arrogance were already two. 

Rei was still fuming when Martin found her ten minutes later.

"Is everything okay?" He asked tentatively and eyed his niece with a wary look on his face. Having left his mother in one of her fouler moods it was not a joy for him to find another pair of flashing angry violet eyes waiting in his own office. 

The serene presence of Martin had the desired effect to cool her down enough to make her reign in her temper. Smoothing her face she replied. "Everything is just perfect." The lie came easily to her lips. She just hoped it sounded as sincere as well. 

"Uh huh." Martin replied warily. Her tone of voice clearly didn't assure him at all. He wondered if the news he had for her would send her over the edge and make her show that famous temper he remembered she had as a child.  

Stalling for time, he picked up her bag and absently ran his hand over the straps. Something caught his eyes and he lifted it higher to take a closer look, and stilled. 

"Rei, are you aware of the fact that you have a large rent in your bag?"

"What?" Rei's brows furrowed and in three quick strides she was beside him, yanking the object from his hand. She started muttering under her breath. His knowledge of Japanese only spotty at best, Martin was still able to recognize enough words to have his brows rising in surprise. 

"It's okay, these things happens." He tried to calm her down. 

Her eyes were heated when she looked up at him. "You don't understand. My _passport _was in here. And my phone, my address book, the key to the apartment and …." Her voice dwindled off. 

Assuming that she was too distressed to talk further, Martin patted her awkwardly on the shoulder. "It's okay. We'll settle everything. I have a few contacts that can help us out. Why don't you write down everything that you had in the bag and I'll make a call to Lieutenant Vlachos and see if he can start the ground work for us before we head down to the station later?"

 "I don't see why I need to wait til later. I might as well go now, I already know who did it and I remember enough of the asshole's face to give a good description of him." The very thought of that worm that had run into her with the business portfolio at the street had her blood boiling. She couldn't believe that she actually fell for a cheap trick like that. 

Martin cleared his throat. "Well I don't think that would be quite possible."

A flash of impatience entered her eyes but she kept her voice even and hid the annoyance from showing in her voice. "What do you mean?"

Martin made a face. "Madame wants to see you."

There was a moment of silence. 

"I beg your pardon?"

"She asked me to send you in; she wants to talk to you."

"Can't it wait?" Her tone was polite but the annoyance in her grew. In her mind she kept thinking about all the procedures ahead of them not to mention the mind boggling idea of how she was going to replace her missing passport. Was there even a Japanese embassy in New York? Should she go there after the station or before? What if the police wanted some kind of identification? What did this exactly mean for her? Was she considered an illegal alien? Would she be deported immediately to the border?

"I know how you feel. But trust me, Rei; it'll go much faster if we do things my way. Let me get in touch with my contact and have him smooth things for us. It beats waiting at the station which is what I guarantee we will be doing if we just march down there right now. I'll make the call while you talk to Madame." 

Rei folded her arms across her chest. 

Martin sighed. "I know how you feel and under the circumstance I can't say I blame you but you are going to accept her authority sooner or later. "

Rei let out a frustrated sound and threw up her hand in the air. "Why does everybody jump the moment she snaps her fingers? You guys are adults and this is not the army."

Martin gave her an indulgent smile at the euphemism. "Because she is the matriarch, she is Holden." He said in a tone that told her that she would understand that, given time. 

Rei grunted. Her attitude clearly telling him that day would never happen.

"Rei, just go. Please, for me."

Rei give him a dirty look, telling him clearly what she thought about using a trick like that. He gave her a tiny smile that looked slightly boyish; it startled her as much as him doing it. She wouldn't have figured him the type joke around like that. 

"Fine. Where do I see Her Majesty?" She muttered.

As she followed Martin into the lion's den, Rei swore if she didn't leave this place soon, she was going to be driven nuts by her father's family.

~ o ~

"Alright just what was that all about?" Jay demanded of Darien after having finally tracked him down in his own office. 

Sitting comfortably behind Jay's desk with his feet resting on top of it, Darien grinned while he swiveled the chair from side to side. "Yanked your chains, didn't it?" 

Jay walked over to the desk and casually knocked Darien's feet to the floor. "Since when have I ever needed your help in getting girls? I had everything in control."

"Yeah, but this made things more interesting." He received an annoyed look for reply. "Come on, you gotta admit she is a looker." 

"It's not time yet."

His friend read more through that short sentence however. One dark wing arched challengingly. "Don't tell me you're having second thoughts about using her."

"I never said that." Annoyance tinged his voice. 

"Then what are you waiting for?" Came the impatient demand.

"Just shut up will ya? Damn what's with the nagging? You're turning into a woman."

"Suit yourself." The leather creaked lightly as Darien leaned back against the chair and lit a cigarette. He managed to take one quick drag before it was pulled from his fingers.

"Christ, Dare. Are you trying to get us both kicked out of here? You know how sensitive the new smoke detector is." Jay crushed the cigarette against the marble foot of the Venus statue Mina bought him on one of her whimsical trips to the Mediterranean. His movement was jerky. Despite himself he couldn't help but to inhale deeply at the smoke that Darien blew out. Damn he missed the smell of a good cigarette. 

Muttering something about how a man can't get a decent smoke anywhere around the city, Darien turned back to the subject they had been discussing. "So what's the next move, oh great strategist?"

"Get me Pratt and Leon's schedule. See if you can arrange a meeting for us without it looking too obvious. Aside from the Holdens they are the two major stockholders of the company. I'm going to need their help too if I'm hoping to pull off my plans at the extra Stockholder meeting in August."

"You still want to me to dig into Marcus' accident? What about Jones?"

"Pratt and Leon are the priorities at the moment. They're both stubborn and ornery and I'm afraid I'm going to need all the time I have from now til August to convince those two to agree to my plans. If you got time to spare keep up with Marcus' things too. Let me deal with Jones. And Rei."

Darien spread his arms. "Whatever you say, boss."

Jay threw the stump at him. 

"Hey watch it. It's an Armani." Darien brushed at his jacket. 

Jay snorted. "So send me the cleaning bill." 

"No but I'll tell the caterer to send you the bill for the wedding reception." Darien retorted. "You know, Serena just hired Mona Delacroix to do the catering?"

The woman was known to throw elaborate and tasteful parties to suit her limited but special clientele. The cream de la cream of Eastern coast always fought to have her arrange their parties. Jay had never had the use of her expertise but he's had several friends who had and they always did get startled by her bills when they came later and these were people for whom money was no option. 

"Sorry, but as fond as I am of you and Serena, we're not really that close. You'll just have to settle for me being the best man and the bachelor party I'm throwing you. Now do you mind getting off my chair so I can get back to work? I have two more sketches I need to fine tune before I show it to the clients." Once Darien had vacated his seat, Jay added. "And do remind me to talk to Martin about your workload. We obviously don't seem to be giving you enough since you have so much spare time to chat with people."

Darien chuckled. "You know Jay, you're going to have to work on that jealous nature of yours if you plan on making a move on Rei; a looker like her is bound to get a lot of male attention." He told him from the door.

"Yeah right." They both knew he wasn't reputing Darien's description of Rei as much as his claim of Jay's jealous nature. They both knew when it came to Jay's relationships; the women were the ones who got jealous. He was much too controlled and self confident for that. 

And his confidence was telling him it was time to make the first move on what he knew was bound to be an interesting battle between him and the spirited Miss Hino. 

Pressing a button on the intercom he said, "Janice. Do you know if Miss Hino has left the building yet?"

"No sir. I mean, she hasn't. I saw her heading down the corridor towards Madame Holden's office about ten minutes ago."

Jay's brow rose in surprise at the news. Now this was something he had not anticipated. Not the fact that Madame called Rei, he knew she would sooner or later, he just hadn't realized that she would manage to work through her pride that quickly. 

Well, well, well. It seems he wasn't the only one eager to get hold of Rei's share of the stocks. 

~ o ~

They said that an office can reveal a lot about its owner but if that was the case, what Rei managed to get only left her befuddled. 

She was sitting in one of the two chairs facing Madame while she waited for the woman to finish her conversation with the darkly handsome man on the TV-screen. Her hands, itching to move as a result of her restlessness, were clasped firmly in front of her. The only thing that showed her impatience was her wandering eyes which moved over the room in a slow languid gesture as they took in everything while French flowed rapidly in the background.

The room was large and quite spartanly decorated for someone who insisted on everyone calling her Madame. The choice of furniture seemed to lean towards antique, dark and masculine, although the decorations tended to be elegant and classic with a slight feminine touch. The mixture should have looked odd but somehow the combination worked. Even the thin TV-monitor sticking out of the dark wooden wall looked as if it fit there just as well as the two classic paintings hanging beside it. The spacey looking computer should have clashed against the antique rococo desk it rested on, but it didn't - quite the opposite actually, it seemed to suit perfectly with the rest of the room.

The strangest thing Rei found however, was the lack of photos. For someone who claimed that family mattered the most and who was the head of the family, the office certainly didn't hold one single photo frame to show for it. And it made Rei wonder just what kind of a woman her paternal grandmother was. 

"I gather, you're wondering why you're here." 

The abrupt question fired into the air gave her a start. Pulling herself back from her thoughts, Rei turned her attention towards the matriarch sitting by the large leather chair, looking every inch like a queen holding court. 

Refusing to be intimidated, Rei met her eyes steadily and replied calmly. "You want to speak to me about the stocks my father gave me." No need to hedge around the topic like a cat around a warm bowl of cream.

Madame inclined her head regally. "Good then we don't need to waste time. Here." She pulled out a black document file and tossed it lightly. The shining surface made the object skid smoothly to the other end towards Rei. 

A cold feeling of uneasiness was sliding up and down her spine as she picked up the file. One glance at the official look of the folder and she could already guess the content but she pretended otherwise. 

"And what's this?"

"That is the official contract saying that Holden Inc. will buy back your share of the stock at the market value. The deal has been briefed and approved by the board. The moment you sign it, money will be transferred to your account in Japan or any where else you want in the world."

"I see." Her tone of voice was light, never revealing the anger that was currently coiling around her stomach like a snake. Somehow hearing that cool and professional tone of voice hurt where the insults and snubbing she had received ever since she had gotten there had not. Pride however prevented her from showing it. 

"That's a very generous offer you have here but unfortunately I will have to decline." Rei closed the file with a finality. 

The woman was as still as a statue and revealed as much in the sense of emotion. "I don't think you quite understand what I'm offering you, girl." The words were spoken coolly, but the emphasize she put on the word _girl_ revealed a show of temper. "You are about to say no to an opportunity to make you a very wealthy young woman."

Rei tilted her head slightly to the side. "I thought that was already established a few days ago. At least if you go by what the press is saying." She recalled the magazine and the headline she glimpsed at the reception.

At the mentioning of the press, Madame's lips thinned. Well at least they had that much in common. "Well they are wrong. You might own ten percent of one of the largest constructing companies in the world but it'll still take a while before you will see any earnings on that. Dividends on those shares are only paid out once a year and its still half a year left in the meantime you still have the cost of living, things that you're going to need to work to keep up. What I am offering you is a deal of a lifetime one that will make sure that you never have to work again for the rest of your life."

It was tempting, the offer was really tempting. Not for herself, she couldn't care less about the money but at the same time, she knew that with it she would be able to give her grandfather a better life. Spirits know, they had been having problems making ends meet lately, which was one of the reasons why she took on the part time job at the store. But he loved that temple and despite that old crone's many bad habits she did love the geezer a lot. With this money she would be able to make sure he lived comfortably for the rest of his life. She could hire people that would be able to help out with the temple so that he didn't have to take care of the daily routines anymore. That way he would be able to do what he enjoyed best, flirting with pretty women. Plus she could even restore the old place and give it a polish that they haven't been able to do in the past decade or so. 

Knowing all of that, Rei's heart was heavy and there was a twinge of sadness in her when she shook her head and said, "Be as it may. I still can't accept your offer."

For the first time since their conversation started, Madame let her control slip as annoyance flashed in her eyes and impatient tinged her voice. "Why are you being so obstinate about it? Is it because of revenge? You want to get back at me because you feel I have neglected you all these years? Or do you hold me responsible for the end of your parent's marriage?"

Her tone easily implied that it was nonsense to feel that way, since she certainly didn't have cause for it. Irritation flared inside Rei at being spoken to as a silly child. 

Lifting her chin, Rei met her eyes haughtily. "No, because that would imply that you mean more to me than a stranger." She knew she was being rude but she didn't give a damn about that. The woman's high handed ways irked her. "I have better things to do with my life than to spend it dreaming about being part of this family." She put a special emphasize on the word _this_ that clearly stated what she felt and Madame's lips thinned in response.

"Are you saying you're too good to be a Holden?"

She quirked her brow slightly. "I thought it was already obvious how I felt when I took on the name Hino."

There was a heavy silence weighting in the air. Rei knew she had gone too far even as she let the words slip from her tongue but it was too late to take them back. Even if that was the way she felt she had not intended to ever say those words out loud, ever. Being angry with one's father for neglecting her was one thing but being outright rude and obstinate towards his mother was something else. This was not how she was brought up and behaving this way was a serious insult to her grandfather and his work. But the fact was the woman irritated her like no others had before. She disliked the cool look in that woman's eyes and the way she spoke as if this was just a normal if sticky business deal. She certainly didn't like to be spoken to like a little girl who ought to be grateful for what she was offered. It made her feel like her less than wealthy background was something she ought  to be ashamed of when in fact she was proud of it. Well others might have to take it, but Rei didn't understand why she should.

"Then tell me what you want?" 

Something about the way the woman spoke, had Rei guessing that Madame was expecting the worse and that this was not something she was unused to. For the first time, Rei could feel a part of her pitying the woman – a very small part. Being in the position Madame was in, Rei supposed, the woman was bound to come upon people who wanted what her money and power could give them. 

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" It was clear the woman didn't believe her. 

Rei's lips curved though she really didn't feel any humor in the whole situation. The woman truly was paranoid. 

"You might not believe me and frankly I don't really care but I am going to tell you this so that I have had it said and you can pass it on to the rest of your family members so I don't need to repeat myself. I don't care about the stocks nor do I want them. I would be more than happy to get them off my hands as soon as possible. However, "she added in a louder voice when Madame seemed about to speak up. "I can't, not at the moment."

It took the other woman a moment before she was able to speak. It seemed Madame wasn't used to people interrupting her. Well tough luck. 

"You speak one thing but your actions say another. Why is that?" 

Rei hesitated for a while. Common sense told her the less people involved who knew the better, but her instincts told her something else and in the end she decided to listen to the latter. "Father wanted me to do something for him."

Madame held herself so still Rei thought for a moment her body had turned to stone but then she spoke up, "What?"

"I'm not sure yet, I'm still finding clues." She let some of the frustration she felt show. 

The matriarch nodded her head sagely. "He would do that if he had a reason." For a moment there her eyes softened changing her face completely. Suddenly sitting there wasn't the cold harsh business woman that worked herself to the top and built an empire, but a proud mother thinking of her beloved son. But that moment was gone quickly and soon the business woman was resurfacing, her eyes boring in to Rei's.

"James feels that I have been very harsh on you and that I should cut you some slack. And to a certain extent Martin feels the same way too."

She knew she shouldn't be surprised but finding out she suddenly had knights coming to her rescue was unnerving. 

"In respect to their request I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you are not here to wreak havoc on our lives." 

Rei stiffened in outrage at that analogy but this time it was the older woman's turn to cut her off from speaking. 

"As of that I am going require that you inform me the moment you know more about whatever it is that Marcus has set you out to do. Do you keen, girl?"

She wanted to say no, but the will in those violet eyes as they bore into hers had her throat clogging up and her tongue swelling. Fortunately the experience of being ordered around like a soldier, had the effect of bringing out the anger in her and with it came enough strength to at least stare her eye for eye without saying the inevitable yes either. Not that it really mattered because Madame seemed to take her silence for affirmative all the same. 

Giving a satisfied nod, she said. "Very well then run along and continue with whatever it is that you and Martin were about to do. I have a business to take care of."

Seething inside, Rei angrily rose to her feet and headed for the exit. She was just about to reach for the handle to the door when Madame stopped her. 

"By the way, as a note, I watch over what's mine. If I so much as get a hint that you were lying to me today…. "

There was no need for her to finish the rest of the threat. Rei's hand was practically shaking when she took hold of the handle. In her mind she kept telling herself the woman was not worth getting worked up over and just to move her legs and get out of there so she wouldn't have to deal with her ever again, but once again pride wouldn't allow her to just leave without saying anything. 

Whirling around, her long hair flowing like a cape down her back, Rei said. "You know what? I really feel sorry for you; you must be a really unhappy woman if all you can do is look at everyone with suspicion. I do hope I never have the misfortune to end up like you, because it must be a really hellish and lonely life up there in your tower of righteousness while you look down on the rest of us mortals with those judgmental eyes of yours."

She had the delight of slamming the door behind her with the vision of the matriarch staring at her with wide eyed surprise. 

"Is everything alright, Rei?" Marcus asked and tucked the cell phone back into his jacket. Rising from the settee he had been occupying, he walked over to her from the waiting hall. His eyes drifted to the closed door and back to Rei. 

Giving him a tight smile, Rei said. "Everything is just fine."

The look he gave her clearly said he didn't believe but he was too much of a gentleman to pursue. "Then let's be on our way. George is waiting for us."

Grateful that he let the matter drop, Rei nodded her head and allowed him to steer her down the majestic long hallway. She felt Madame's secretary looking at her with disapproval but was too tired to care. All she could think about what to get everything sorted and just head back to the condo. She wanted to take a hot bath and just sink her worries under the surface. 

They reached the reception hall by the elevators when they were halted by a call.

"Miss Hino." The woman at the reception desk spoke up. When Rei turned to face her, she lifted a white envelope. "Mr. Arlington told met to give this to you the moment you came back."

There was a speculative look in the woman's eyes but she didn't say anything more and without having to look back, Rei knew Martin was wearing the same kind of look as the redheaded woman. 

Without a word Rei pulled out the card from the envelope and read the message written there:

_Have dinner with me tonight. _

It was signed with a simple J. 

Plastering a false smile on her face, Rei turned to the woman and said. "Do you have a pen I could borrow?"

"Yes of course. " The woman quickly handed her a slim pencil with the Holden logo on it. 

Using the woman's desk as a support and making sure that open envelope hid the message from the woman's hawk eyes; Rei quickly scrawled a short note before putting the card back into the envelope and handed it the girl. 

"Please make sure Mr. Arlington gets this. Thank you."

She hoped the scathing remark she wrote would cut him in half, but she doubted someone with an ego like his would bruise that easily. It did give her immense pleasure saying no to him and without having to come up with an excuse. 

For the first time since she let Mina talk her into her plans, Rei felt herself looking forward to clubbing. After everything that had happened a long hot bath wouldn't do, she was going to need a strong drink.

Turning back to her uncle she gave him her first genuine smile for the day and said, "Now why don't you take me down to the station so we can take care of some serious business?"

* * *

AN: I hope this chapter wasn't too much of a disappointment to you guys. I know it took me a long time to update it and for which I apologize for. Things have been insane at work and I've had to do a lot of OT lately. I'm hoping the next chapter won't take as long but it's very hard to say. I have the chapter outlined but writing the scenes takes longer than I anticipated however. Oh and for those of you who were disappointed by the outcome between Jay and Rei, don't worry first kiss is coming up in next chapter. ;) 

My warmest thanks to all of you readers and especially you the reviewers. You have no idea how much your thoughts and opinions means to me. Not only are you helping me to improve this story but also you're helping me improving my writing skills.

**Joanna**, thanks for always being outright honest. Your reviews are always a joy to read. And thanks for the tips on the Dior bag. It's definitely going to show up soon. =)

**Step-chan**, thank you for your long reviews. I really loved them and appreciate the pointers you gave. 

**Eve**, I'm glad you're loving the story. By the way, I'm still waiting for that letter you promised. ;)

**chickay****, MaLee, Princess Ren, Miyaka, Kayla. Gizelle, Jabba1 and ****Firenze** for following this story from the start and always giving me reviews. 

As always a special thanks to **charliechaplin2,** my beta. After all the help you've given me, I'm really going to have to dedicate this story to you. =)


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